Working alone procedure British Columbia

In British Columbia, the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation addresses the safety and compliance requirements for workers working alone or in isolation. "To work alone or in isolation" means working in circumstances where assistance would not be readily available to the worker in case of an emergency, or in case the worker is injured or in ill health. [1]

Key aspects of ensuring worker safety and regulatory compliance include:

• Hazard Identification and Control: Before assigning a worker to work alone or in isolation, employers must identify any hazards to that worker and take measures to eliminate the hazard, or minimize the risk from the hazard to the lowest level practicable using engineering controls, administrative controls, or a combination of both.
• Well-being Check Procedures: Employers are required to develop and implement a written procedure for checking the well-being of a worker assigned to work alone or in isolation, including the time interval between checks, the procedure to follow if the worker cannot be contacted, and provisions for emergency rescue. A person must be designated to establish contact with the worker at predetermined intervals, and the results must be recorded. In addition to checks at regular intervals, a check at the end of the work shift must be done. The procedure must be developed in consultation with the joint committee or worker health and safety representative, as applicable, and with the worker assigned to work alone or in isolation.
• Training: Workers assigned to work alone and any person assigned to check on the worker must be trained in the written procedure for checking the worker's well-being.

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