Health and Safety Excellence program association toolkit

Welcome to our toolkit for associations, where you will find useful information to help your members learn more about our Health and Safety Excellence program and the rewards available.

In the toolkit below, you will find content you can share through your own newsletters, social media and websites to raise awareness about the benefits of the program and help your members stay informed. The toolkit includes:

You may wish to bookmark this page for easy access to the content. If you have any questions, please contact us at health_and_safety@wsib.on.ca and we will be happy to help.

Website content

Please adapt or rearrange any of the following bullets to include as copy on your association's website or as part of an online Q&A page:

Program overview:

  • The program provides a clear road map for businesses to improve workplace safety, whether they are just getting started or want to optimize systems and processes they already have in place.
  • The Health and Safety Excellence program is flexible – it is tailored to individual business needs across different sectors and helps foster a culture health and safety and improve outcomes.
  • The program connects businesses of all sizes with WSIB-approved providers that will help you develop health and safety measures that are suitable for your business. To learn more, review our WSIB- approved provider list. 
  • The Health and Safety program has 36 topics spread across three levels – foundation, intermediate and advanced – to help develop and integrate health and safety into workplaces and take a business from awareness to excellence.
  • The Health and Safety Excellence program can also help businesses achieve best practice standard, such as COR2020 or ISO 45001.
  • Businesses that are successful in the program will earn rebates and other non-financial recognition for their investment in health and safety.
  • The rebate structure for the new health and safety program is based on a business's ability to impact their rate, in line with our new premium rate-setting model.
    • Businesses with less ability to impact their rates will receive a higher rebate.
    • Businesses with more ability to impact their rates will receive a lower rebate.

Pandemic readiness

  • Now more than ever before, workplace health and safety is critical for businesses. Keeping your employees and customers healthy and safe during a pandemic needs to remain a top priority.
  • The WSIB’s Health and Safety Excellence program can help get pandemic ready and stay ready.
  • The Health and Safety Excellence program will help stop the spread of COVID-19 and help businesses keep their people and our communities safe.
  • The following five topics address immediate pandemic related priorities and can help businesses safely resume operations and remain open.
    • Risk assessment – assess COVID-19 related health and safety risks in your workplace, including any new or modified operations or work locations, such as transitioning to work from home offices.
    • Control of hazards – control the spread of COVID-19 through implementation of engineering controls, administrative controls, safe work practices, such as hygiene and sanitation, and personal protective equipment (PPE).
    • Emergency prevention and preparedness – ensure your organization is ready to address challenges resulting from COVID-19 and is pandemic ready.
    • Emergency response – define a work plan to address COVID-19, prevent spread, and resume your business operations safely.
    • Workplace health promotion – empower your staff and support employee mental health through the pandemic and foster a more engaged and resilient workforce.
       

Social media

The following material can be used or adapted to boost awareness/promote the WSIB’s Health and Safety Excellence program. Please share or repost existing content on the WSIB’s social platforms or develop original posts using the copy and images provided below.

Program overview

Keeping your team and customers safe and healthy is good for business. Learn more about how the Health and Safety Excellence program will provide your business with a clear roadmap to meet the challenges of operating safely. (link to your website)

Pandemic readiness

Ontario businesses are adapting to new health and safety parameters to help stop the spread of COVID-19. Make sure your business is pandemic ready. This isn’t just about workplace safety it’s about helping to keep your people and community healthy and safe https://www.wsib.ca/en/health-and-safety-excellence-program-pandemic-readiness 

Is your business preparing to open its doors? The Health and Excellence program can help your business meet the challenges of operating safely during a pandemic. Get in touch to learn more about the program’s customizable plans and materials. (link to your website)
 

Downloadable graphics

These downloadable graphics are available to post with the suggested social media copy provided above or using custom copy that relates to the WSIB's Health and Safety Excellence program. Dimensions for the graphics are standard sizing (1200 pixels x 628 pixels) and applicable for posts on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook on both desktop and mobile.

Downloadable graphic 1
Downloadable graphic 2

Website buttons

The WSIB website has lots of information about the Health and Safety Excellence program. To help your members easily find this information, we have created two button options for your website that will link directly to the Health and Safety Excellence program webpage.

Learn more about the Health and Safety Excellence Program

Learn more about the Health and Safety Excellence Program

 

Articles

To provide your members with an overview of the program, one of the following articles can be used in your association newsletter or posted on your website.

Postcard

This printable postcard is available to share with members looking to learn more about the health and safety program. The recommended specification for printing are 4 x 6 inches, CMYK 2-sides, Cougar 100lbs cover.

Side 1

Side 1 postcard

Side 2

Making Ontario Safer postcard side 2

 

FAQs

Program overview

Why should I join the program?

Our program provides businesses with the opportunity to invest in their workplace health and safety and improve their workplace culture. The program helps businesses create a healthier and safer workplace, which could result in lower premium rates, earning rebates and recognition.

How does the program work?

There are four components to our program:

  1. Businesses select a WSIB-approved provider to work with, complete an assessment to help determine where they should start in their health and safety journey and develop an action plan to work on health and safety topics of their choice.
  2. Businesses learn how to complete topics with the help of a provider.
  3. Businesses submit evidence of their topic completion for review by a WSIB validator.
  4. Businesses receive a rebate on their WSIB premiums and recognition for investing in a healthier and safer workplace, such as digital achievement badges.

Who is eligible to participate in the program?

All Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 businesses with an active WSIB account number are eligible to participate. See our program guidelines for specific program criteria.

Schedule 2 businesses will be able to participate in the program (i.e., develop an action plan and receive validation on topics completed) however will not receive a financial rebate as they do not pay premiums. Schedule 2 businesses will receive non-financial recognition for their achievements (i.e., topics and levels they complete).

What rebate amount can a business earn?

Businesses fall into one of two categories of predictability based on their ability to influence their premium rate through their health and safety experience:

Businesses with 20 per cent or less predictability will receive two per cent of their total annual WSIB premiums (based on previous calendar year premiums at the time of rebate calculation) per health and safety topic successfully completed and verified by a WSIB validator.

Businesses with greater than 20 per cent predictability will receive 1.4 per cent of their total annual WSIB premiums (based on previous calendar year premiums at the time of rebate calculation) per health and safety topic completed and verified by a WSIB validator.

Pandemic readiness

I have already developed COVID-19 policies and procedures to respond to the crisis. Will the program recognize systems and procedures we already have in place?

Any COVID-19 related policies and procedures your business has in place are considered NEW health and safety initiatives, eligible for program participation, regardless of when started. Noting that the new restrictions placed on businesses are still evolving, the program will help you with further adjustments and tweaks to existing policies in place.

Am I required to choose a COVID-19 suggested topic(s)?

The five suggested COVID-19 topics will be helpful in following the guidance provided by the Government of Ontario for re-opening and ensuring the safety of your employees and customers,  however the program is flexible and you are not required to select them. You can choose any of the 36 program topics available to improve the health and safety in your workplace.

When will I receive a rebate for implementing the COVID-19 suggested topics?

The COVID-19 suggested topics are treated the same as the other 31 program topics. Rebates are paid in the spring and fall of each year. To qualify for the fall 2020 rebate you will need to implement your topics by August 1, 2020.

Stay connected

For questions about the program, contact us at health_and_safety@wsib.on.ca.