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Promoting a culture of safety

University policy highlights roles and responsibilities for maintaining environmental health and safety
October 10, 2012
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By Isabel Rut


This article is the fifth in a series of seven, published weekly on important Concordia policies. This is part of a policy-awareness campaign that will culminate in employees being asked to confirm that they have read the policies when they access myempath in the MyConcordia portal following the publication of the last story.

Every employee — executives, faculty members and support staff — has  a responsibility under the Concordia Environmental Health and Safety Policy (VPS-40) to ensure a secure and healthy school and work environment.  

“The Environmental Health and Safety Policy clearly identifies the roles and responsibilities of every member of the Concordia community,” says Senior Director of Environmental Health, Safety and Security, Richard Young.  “It supports the internal responsibility system and complies with the Quebec Health and Safety at Work law by providing employee and student input into decisions which may affect their overall well-being.”

This policy was amended in 2004 to expand the scope of the university’s responsibility under federal law C-21, which amends the criminal code by specifically addressing the health and safety responsibilities of employees. “Essentially, the policy outlines the levels of responsibility within Concordia, descending from the President’s Executive Group through the various levels of supervision to the individual employee and student, with accountability passing back up,” says Vice-President, Services, Roger Côté.

It also encompasses emergency management responsibilities to comply with Canadian standards, Quebec law and our university insurance advisor’s recommendations.

“Thousands of people grace our halls daily, so ensuring everyone’s health and safety must be a collaborative effort,” says Associate Vice-President, Human Resources, Carolina Willsher.
 
All Concordia employees are encouraged to review the complete Environmental Health and Safety Policy for more details. There are also other important policies on this site, which has been developed to clarify ambiguous conditions relevant to employees in specific departments. See the question-and-answer section on the Human Resources page under “policies and procedures” for a full list of policies related to the awareness campaign.

Related links:
•    "Code exists to protect" – NOW, September 12, 2012
•    "Policy awareness campaign highlights employee Code of Ethics" – NOW, September 19, 2012
•    "Protecting of Personal Information" – NOW, September 26, 2012
•    "Safety First" – NOW, October 3, 2012
•    Environmental Health and Safety Policy (VPS-40)
•    Official Concordia policies website and Q&A



 



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