Small Business Health and Safety Leadership Awards

Submission period for 2023 is now closed.

Win up to $10,000 by telling us what your small business has done over the past year to improve your workplace health and safety.

We know how hard small business owners and operators work to keep their employees healthy and safe.

That’s why each year we recognize the health and safety achievements of independently-owned and operated businesses with fewer than 50 employees through our Small Business Health and Safety Leadership Awards.

Entering is easy – just answer the questions in our
submission form
 and email it back to us.


We’ll review the entries and create a short list of the top candidates. We’ll ask shortlisted businesses to provide supporting materials (like photos, documents, video, etc.) for the answers provided on the submission form.

The top three businesses will receive a monetary prize:

  • Gold – $10,000
  • Silver – $6,000
  • Bronze – $4,000

Who can enter:

  • businesses registered with the WSIB whose account is in good standing (i.e., all premiums and other amounts owing to the WSIB are paid up-to-date, no convictions under the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act)
  • independently-owned and operated businesses that have at least one employee (not including the owner/operator) but less than 50 employees
  • during the life of their business, entrants must not have:
    • any fatalities in the workplace 
    • any convictions by the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development for violations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) and its regulations or the Employment Standards Act (ESA) 
  • past winners are not eligible to re-apply for five years

How to enter:

  1. Download and save the
    submission form
     on your computer or device, and enter your responses in the text fields
  2. Send your completed submission form to smallbizsafety@wsib.on.ca

Shortlisted businesses will be asked to send supporting information for the answers provided in the submission form. The types of files you can send us include photos, documents, videos, signage, certifications, etc.

Please email us at smallbizsafety@wsib.on.ca if you have questions about the submission process – we’re here to help.

2022 award winners

Our 2022 winners were announced at our Small Business Health and Safety Forum on January 26, 2023:

  • Gold – Just Working Construction Inc., Kitchener-Waterloo
  • Silver – Northern Equipment Rentals, Sudbury
  • Bronze – Diamond Tree Care & Consulting Inc., Georgetown

You can check out how our gold winner, Just Working Construction Inc., improved their workplace health and safety and learn more about how you can do the same.

Interested in taking health and safety in your business to the next level?

Keeping your team safe and healthy at work is good for business. Our Health and Safety Excellence program helps you make your workplace safer while earning rebates on your WSIB premiums.