Joint OHS Committees in the NL Offshore Area

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Lester Joseph
5 years ago
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1 Joint OHS Committees in the NL Offshore Area Supplementary Information/Clarification to OHS Committee Training August 2009

2 Purpose of this presentation To emphasize that the purpose and functioning of offshore OHS committees is the same as onshore OHS Committees with some small differences in the regulatory regime To emphasize that the training you have received as committee members is applicable to your offshore committee but there are some specific legislative differences To highlight these differences and hopefully address any confusion

3 Outline of this presentation A review of key points about OHS Committees that apply to both onshore and offshore Clarification points with regard to OHS and OHS Committees for the offshore Memorandum of Understanding between C-NLOPB & the provincial Department of Government Services Workplace (Installation) focused vs Employer focused Roles of Operator & Installation Owner Lines of Communication & reporting relationships Other Authorities Offshore Regulations Summary

4 Key Messages for Joint OHS Committees (A Review) The requirement for Joint OHS Committees comes from legislation The Joint OHS Committee has a key function of promoting & supporting safety in the workplace The Joint OHS Committee is an opportunity for workers and management to work together to reduce risk The Joint OHS Committee is integral to worker rights Right to know Right to participate Right to refuse dangerous work The Joint OHS Committee must Hold regular meetings Keep meeting minutes and other records Identify hazards via workplace inspections and other means Support the functioning of the Safety Management System and improvement of the safety culture

5 Current situation - MOU between C-NLOPB & provincial Dept of Government Services Accord Acts reference NL OHS Act for OHS requirement C-NLOPB has jurisdiction over offshore oil/gas activities MOU established between C-NLOPB and provincial Dept of Government Services for C-NLOPB to administer provisions of NL OHS Act in the offshore OHS Committees / Worker Rights / Employer and Employee obligations For greater certainty Other Requirements Respecting Occupational Health and Safety is an attached condition of all work authorizations So YOU ARE COVERED

6 Proposed OHS amendments to the Accord Acts Accord Acts are being amended to address OHS requirements directly within the Accord Acts As mentioned in earlier presentations, and in prior Annual JOHS sessions, these Accord Acts OHS amendments are being progressed between the NL Dept of Government Services, the C-NLOPB, the NS Dept of Labour, the CNSOPB and the Federal Government A training syllabus specifically for offshore Joint OHS Committees is being developed. It will be ready for when the amendments are proclaimed into law

7 Current situation Workplace Vs Employer focused Committees On land committees are generally employer-focused, i.e. each employer is required to form a committee. There are exceptions to this for some multiemployer sites Offshore the C-NLOPB agrees it is more appropriate and efficient that each workplace (installation) shall have a committee (North Sea Model) Offshore Committees, pursuant to the Terms of Reference developed and agreed by the committee, often divide the installation workforce into constituencies to improve representation and efficiency Offshore there is a committee group per hitch. This creates communication and coordination challenges that are not present for onshore committees. These committee groups must address these challenges so that they function as ONE committee in the workplace (installation), not two committees

8 Current situation - Roles of Operator & Installation Owner Committees are generally established by the Installation Owner On installations that are not owned by the operator, the operator still plays a key role While there is no specific requirement that operators be represented on committees on contractor owned installations, the C-NLOPB expects and the law requires that the operator cooperate with the committee and monitor its progress to ensure that it is functioning effectively

9 Current situation - Lines of Communication Offshore your first line of contact with the regulator is via a C-NLOPB Safety Officer; not a provincial safety officer As you probably know we assign a Safety Officer to monitor each offshore authorization BUT you can contact any C-NLOPB Safety Officer (General Contact # is ) We are available as a resource to your committee so calls need not be limited to complaints or refusals. We strongly encourage you to contact us for help and information. Helping your committee is part of our job You are also free to contact the Chief Safety Officer While making an appointment will help ensure we are available, an appointment is not necessary. Please feel free to contact us at any time by phone, or in person (we can meet in our offices or at some other location)

10 Current situation - Reporting Relationships Minutes of all your meetings are forwarded to the C-NLOPB and are reviewed by a designated Safety Officer, as well as the facility-assigned Safety Officer Any work refusal that reaches the Joint OHS Committee must be reported to the C-NLOPB All reportable incident reports are reviewed by a designated Safety Officer, as well as the facility-assigned Safety Officer All Daily reports are reviewed by the assigned Safety Officer

11 Current situation Other Authorities While Committees need to be aware of the roles of the following, your contact is with the C-NLOPB Flag State and SOLAS rules apply on floating installations Transport Canada has the role as flag state and via MOU with C-NLOPB Some Installations are also Canadian Flagged Vessels Transport Canada inspects foreign vessels conducting coastal trade The C-NLOPB gets advice from TC on marine matters and requires a Transport Canada-Letter of Compliance on foreign flagged installations & standby Vessels Certifying Authorities Transport Canada Aviation

12 Current situation - Regulations The Newfoundland Occupational Health & Safety Regulations do not apply in the NL offshore area. The Offshore Petroleum OHS Regulations and Other Conditions Respecting Occupational Health and Safety apply offshore The next slide contains a list of the regulations that do apply and the operator is required to make these regulations & the associated guidance available to you. The operator, installation owner and your employer are all required to ensure that you are familiar with the legislation that applies to your work. We are always available to assist you either collectively or individually in this regard

13 Current situation - Regulations Draft Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum OHS Regulations Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Drilling Regulations Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Installations Regulations Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Production & Conservation Regulations Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Certificate of Fitness Regulations Newfoundland Offshore Petroleum Diving Regulations * Regulations and associated requirements, guidelines, forms and joint industry practices are available on

14 A Summary of Key Differences in OHS Committees Offshore versus Onshore Legislation administered by C-NLOPB offshore versus provincial Dept of Government Services onshore Committees are workplace (installation) focused offshore versus employer focused onshore Committees offshore need to be aware of the roles played by the operator, installation owner, flag state, Transport Canada and the certifying authorities versus other regulatory players onshore Offshore Petroleum OHS Regulations & conditions of approval under the Accord Acts apply offshore versus the NL OHS Regulations onshore Offshore reporting is to the C-NLOPB not the provincial Dept of Government Services Generally, committees both offshore & onshore function to facilitate cooperation between management and workers in reducing risk.

Newfoundland and Labrador. JOSH Committee Training. Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board

Newfoundland and Labrador. JOSH Committee Training. Canada-Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board Newfoundland and Labrador Offshore Oil and Gas Industry JOSH Committee Training Purpose Acknowledge the need for training that is particular to offshore JOSHCs Summary of Proposal outlined at last year