Quick Links
Customer Centres
Policies to Implement Bill 14
99/07/19-01
THE WORKERS' COMPENSATION BOARD OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
RESOLUTION OF THE PANEL OF ADMINISTRATORS
RE: Policies to Implement Bill 14 — Workers Compensation (Occupational Health and Safety) Amendment Act, 1998
WHEREAS:
Pursuant to Section 82 of the Workers Compensation Act ("Act"), RSBC 1996, Chapter 492 and amendments thereto, the Panel of Administrators ("Panel") must approve and superintend the policies and direction of the Workers’ Compensation Board ("Board"), including policies respecting compensation, assessment, rehabilitation and occupational health and safety, and must review and approve the operating policies of the Board;
AND WHEREAS:
The Workers Compensation (Occupational Health and Safety) Amendment Act, 1998 ("Bill 14"), which amends the occupational health and safety provisions of the Act, generally comes into force on October 1, 1999
AND WHEREAS:
Policies are required to implement Bill 14;
AND WHEREAS:
A new, more user-friendly manual format for prevention policies is also required;
AND WHEREAS:
The Policy and Regulation Development Bureau ("Bureau") has developed draft policies for implementing Bill 14 in consultation with the Prevention Division, set the policies out in a new Prevention Manual format, and conducted extensive public consultation with stakeholders on both the policies and the format;
AND WHEREAS:
The Bill 14 policy development and consultation process has identified several issues that require more research and analysis before they are brought forward to the Panel for decision;
THE PANEL OF ADMINISTRATORS RESOLVES THAT:
- the Panel approves in principle the attached new Prevention Manual and assigns authority to the Director General of the Policy and Regulation Development Bureau to:
- complete the non-Policy, non-Practice components of the new Manual;
- incorporate Prevention Division Practice as it may be approved from time to time;
- and exercise the Director General’s housekeeping authority, as set out in the Panel’s resolution "Re: Housekeeping Changes to Policy Documents" (#98/12/18-03), with respect to the Manual;
- the Panel approves the statements under the heading "POLICY" ("Policies") in each Item of the new Prevention Manual, without further additional public consultation at this time subject to 3 below;
- the Panel approves in principle an overall review of the Policies in two years, recognizing that individual Policies may require review prior to that time;
- the Panel approves the initiation of separate projects for four major issues ("high risk factors", charging of claims costs under section 73, due diligence and what is a "workplace"), timing to be considered by the Priorities Committee in the context of the Bureau’s overall policy development schedule;
- the Panel directs the Bureau to proceed with a review of all other published policies relating to occupational health and safety, with a view to bringing forward in each case recommendations for consolidation in the new Prevention Manual or repeal as appropriate;
- the statements under the heading "POLICY" in each Item of the new Prevention Manual constitute "published policy of the governors" for purposes of Bylaw No. 4 — "Published Policy of the Governors" dated November 16, 1994 (10 WCR 781);
- and this resolution is effective October 1, 1999.
DATED at Richmond, British Columbia, August 5, 1999
| By the Workers' Compensation Board |
|
| DON COTT, CHAIR, PANEL OF ADMINISTRATORS |