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Workwell Tips

A. Expect to be audited if you have a:

1. Higher number or an above-average lost-time-injuries (LTI) rate for two years in a row, compared with your industry;
2. Higher number or an above-average no-lost-time-injuries (NLTI) rate for two years in a row, compared with your industry;
3. Serious injury or amputation in any calendar year;
4. Total injury cost of $20,000 or more in any calendar year;
5. Fatality in the workplace.

B. You can be referred to the Workwell Program in two ways

1. Through a random or targeted inspection by the Ministry of Labour (MOL). MOL assesses the injuries sustained annually within each industry sector, and, based on its findings, sets an annual "sector plan." It also identifies certain kinds of injuries; for example, it might say, "This year we're looking at slips and falls." MOL may refer troubled firms to the WSIB Workwell Program.
2. Through WSIB program areas that have information about the workplace. If WSIB staff observe that your Health & Safety record warrants it, they may refer you to the WSIB Workwell Program. (And by the way, the first requirement WSIB communicates to the troubled firm is to call their safe workplace association, and for service sector members, that's the Ontario Service Safety Alliance.)

C. What to do if you're notified of an audit

1. Call the Ontario Service Safety Alliance (OSSA).
2. Download a copy of the Workwell audit from the WSIB Web site and do a self-assessment. For more information, visit the WSIB's Workwell information page, or call the WSIB Prevention Division at 416-344-1016, or 1-800-663-6639.
3. Get your ducks in a row. Form a team and review your resources, such as what staff to involve and what budget to allocate.
4. Vow to build in a top-down and bottom-up approach: both senior managers and staff need to embrace the plan and the spirit of the plan.

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D. What happens when Workwell comes calling

• The WSIB notifies you that you've been selected for a Workwell audit.
• A couple of weeks later, a WSIB auditor calls to set up an appointment.
• The auditor performs the audit, spending a half to a full day onsite depending on the size of the firm. (If you have multiple locations, the auditor may visit several.) Note that your organization will be compared with your industry peers and not, for example, with the construction industry.
• Two to four weeks after the audit, you receive an audit report with your score and recommendations.
• You have six months to implement the recommendations.
• You are instructed to call the OSSA.
• Six months later, the WSIB performs the second audit, if you did not pass the first time.
• Two to four weeks later, you receive your final score.
• You need 75 percent to pass. If you score less, you're fined a percentage of your annual premium.

E. Be prepared for "all-or-nothing" scoring

1. Each element of a Workwell audit contains several obligations, and each obligation is assigned points. You have to meet all the obligations to get full points for that element. No partial marks.
2. If for example your business has five locations. If four locations are meeting their obligations for a particular element and one is not, you score zero.
3. The Workwell auditor evaluates using a "Document, Implement, Observe" approach. If you document a procedure but don't implement it and it's not observable, you score zero. Similarly, if you implement the procedure and it's observable, but you haven't documented it: zero.

F. Know your equation: [75% - (evaluation score x 0.8678) x annual premium]

That's how you compute the size of the fine you'll pay based on your final score. Assuming your company pays annual premiums of $100,000 to the WSIB, your potential penalties would be:

Score (%)	Surcharge Penalty ($)
25	$ 53,305
45	$ 35,949
55	$ 27,271
65	$ 18,593
75	$ 0

Don't walk this road alone: there's help

OSSA consultants are at the ready with the experience and expertise you need to help you build Health & Safety into your everyday business practices so it becomes second nature to you and your staff.

The good news: a Workwell audit is entirely avoidable. Don't wait for a WSIB notice to put safe work practices and programs in place. The best part about being proactive? Autonomy. Not only do you avoid a surcharge penalty, you implement a Health & Safety program on your terms, at your pace, bearing your brand.

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