Checklist - Worker Participation and JOHSC | Fire Service Safety Management System

1. Scope

Category 2 audits whether workers participate in the safety management system in fact, through the joint occupational health and safety committee and outside it. It covers the committee’s composition, co-chairs and rules of procedure; monthly meetings and posted minutes; member training and paid time; the recommendation and response workflow and its clocks; the committee’s role in inspections, investigations and the audit; standing consultants to Program Improvement Teams; the committee’s self-evaluation; the right to refuse and the concern escalation path; and whether members experience the committee and the department as a place where raising a concern gets an answer.

It does not score the fire chief’s leadership (category 1), the inspection program’s content (category 18) or the investigation method (category 16). It scores the committee’s part in each.

Fed by 02 JOHSC Integration and the Right to Refuse and Work Stoppage policy (04 Policies).

2. Criteria

Source	What it requires	Items
Applicable OHS statute: when a committee is required, its composition, co-chairs, rules of procedure, meeting frequency, functions, minutes, member training and paid time, and the employer’s response to recommendations; the right to refuse (J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative; J07 Right to Refuse and Reprisal Protection)	What the statute sets for each, which this category’s items meet or exceed: at least half worker members not connected with management; two co-chairs; monthly meetings; functions including hazard identification, complaints, inspections, investigations, advice on PPE and programs, and auditing compliance; minutes in the form the regulator requires; a written response to recommendations within the statutory period	2.1 to 2.8, 2.9 to 2.16, 2.17 to 2.24, 2.25 to 2.31, 2.38 to 2.42
Program content, where the applicable statute prescribes it: provision for the establishment and continued operation of the committee, including membership records, rules of procedure, access to a level of management with authority to resolve matters, and the employer’s commitment to cooperate (J03 OHS Policy and Program)	The written program carries these provisions	2.1, 2.5, 2.6, 2.21
ISO 45001 cl. 5.4 consultation and participation of workers, including non-managerial workers, with time, training and resources, and removal of barriers (ISO 45001:2018)	Consultation on policy, roles, hazards, controls, competence, communication, monitoring, audit and improvement; participation in hazard identification, risk assessment, controls and investigation	2.17 to 2.24, 2.32 to 2.37
CSA Z45001 Canadian deviations: worker and worker-representative participation in decision-making; right to refuse (CSA Z45001:19)	Representatives help determine worker needs; refusal process protected	2.32, 2.38 to 2.42
NFPA 1550 ch. 6, occupational safety and health committee (NFPA 1550, 2024)	Committee with member representation, regular meetings, written minutes	2.1, 2.9, 2.11
COR element 1 (policy with worker participation) and element 13 (legislation) (CFCSA, 2021); Ontario COR element on the committee (IHSA, 2017)	Two-way communication; committee functioning per legislation	2.9 to 2.16
CFAI 11A.2 policies that report, evaluate, address and communicate hazards; 11th edition labour-management interaction indicators (CPSE, 2019; CPSE, 2024)	Hazard communication path; labour-management engagement	2.25 to 2.28, 2.43 to 2.46
The regulator’s committee guidance, where the jurisdiction publishes it: effectiveness questions on membership, meetings, training, recommendation process, functions and employer support (J01 OHS Legislation, Regulator and Enforcement; J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative)	Committee self-evaluation	2.32 to 2.37
Psychological safety (Edmondson, 1999)DOI	Members can raise concerns and get answers; the committee responds to concerns	2.43 to 2.47

The CFAI crosswalk in this note and in the checklist table is to the 10th edition (CPSE, 2019); the 11th edition applies to agencies appearing before the Commission from 2027 (CPSE, 2024), and the category structure is unchanged.

3. How to score

Score each item on D, I and E (0 to 3) and derive the item score per 01 Audit Program section 5.
Items coded with a plus sign need both evidence types to score above 1 on implementation.
Weights: C3 critical (x3), K2 core (x2), S1 supporting (x1). L items must score at least 2 for the category to pass.
Category score = sum(weight x item score) / sum(weight x 3). Effectiveness index uses E.
Interview at least one worker member, one employer member and three non-member firefighters, including volunteers, before scoring any I item.

4. Checklist

#	Item	Stage	Wt	Evid	CFAI	Scoring anchors (1 / 2 / 3)
2.1 Composition, co-chairs, rules of procedure
2.1	A committee is established with written terms of reference approved by the fire chief and adopted by the committee (02 JOHSC Integration)	S1	C3 L	D	-	1: committee meets without terms of reference / 2: terms adopted / 3: terms adopted, reviewed within the last 12 months and posted
2.2	At least half the members are worker members not connected with management, selected by the workers or their union or association, and the membership record shows how each was selected	S1	C3 L	D	-	1: worker share below half or selection undocumented / 2: half or more, selection recorded / 3: as 2, and seats filled without vacancy for the last 12 months
2.3	Where the department has volunteer members, at least one worker seat is held by a volunteer member and the meeting time allows volunteers to attend	S1	C3	D+I	-	1: no volunteer seat / 2: seat exists / 3: seat filled, and the volunteer member interviewed attended most meetings in the year
2.4	Two co-chairs serve, one chosen by the worker members and one by the employer, elected or appointed annually in April, and the record shows the current holders	S1	C3 L	D	-	1: one chair / 2: two co-chairs recorded / 3: two co-chairs, elected on schedule, and alternates named
2.5	Rules of procedure cover quorum, agenda, minutes, decision-making, sub-committees, confidentiality and conflict of interest, and the committee follows them	S1	K2 L	D+O	-	1: rules partial / 2: rules complete / 3: rules complete and a meeting observed follows them
2.6	The committee has documented access to a level of management with the authority to resolve matters, and that access has been used in the last year	S1	C3 L	D+I	1A.7	1: access assumed / 2: access written / 3: co-chairs describe a matter resolved through it in the year
2.7	Membership terms, rotation and succession are set so that knowledge is retained and new members join on a rule	S2	S1	D	-	1: no terms / 2: terms set / 3: terms set and the roster shows planned turnover
2.8	The membership record and the terms of reference are posted where members can see them, including at volunteer stations	S1	S1	O	-	1: posted at headquarters / 2: posted at sampled career stations / 3: posted at every sampled station
2.2 Meetings and minutes
2.9	The committee meets at least monthly, the department’s standard whatever the statutory minimum (J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative), and the minutes for the last 12 months show it	S1	C3 L	D	-	1: fewer than 10 meetings in 12 months / 2: 10 or 11 / 3: 12, with quorum at each
2.10	Agendas follow the ten-part skeleton in 02 JOHSC Integration and items are recorded as Background, Situation, Action and Result with a named lead	S1	K2	D	-	1: agendas unstructured / 2: skeleton used / 3: skeleton used and every open item has a lead and a status
2.11	Minutes are prepared in the form the regulator requires, signed by both co-chairs, posted in every workplace within 10 days, and retained as 05 Document Control and Records sets	S1	C3 L	D+O	-	1: minutes late or unsigned / 2: on time and signed / 3: on time, signed, and found posted at sampled stations within the 10 days
2.12	Standing items appear at every meeting: the monthly injury, exposure and near-miss report; the overdue corrective action report; the inspection completion rate; sub-committee reports; program team consultant reports	S1	K2	D	-	1: some standing items / 2: all five / 3: all five with data, and discussion recorded
2.13	The committee receives the audit reports, the indicator report and the management review outputs and records its comments	S2	K2	D	-	1: receives some / 2: receives all / 3: receives all and comments recorded within one meeting
2.14	Sub-committees (for example cancer and health screening, equipment and PPE, decontamination) have a charter, co-chairs from each side, a work plan and report to the main committee	S2	S1	D	-	1: sub-committees informal / 2: chartered / 3: chartered and reporting on schedule
2.15	Guests (safety division, program managers, clinicians, corporate safety) attend on invitation and the minutes record who attended and why	S1	S1	D	-	1: attendance unrecorded / 2: recorded / 3: recorded, and program managers attend when their program is on the agenda
2.16	The committee’s records (minutes, agendas, correspondence, recommendations, responses, inspection reports) are kept in {{Records system}} and can be produced on request	S1	K2 L	D	-	1: records scattered / 2: in the system / 3: in the system and complete for the retention period
2.3 Member training and paid time
2.17	Every committee member has completed the committee training the applicable statute and the department require, within the time set, and the record shows it (J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative)	S1	C3 L	D	-	1: some members trained / 2: all trained / 3: all trained within the time set and refreshers scheduled
2.18	Members are paid or credited for meetings, training, inspections and committee duties, including volunteer members (ISO 45001:2018, cl. 5.4)	S1	K2 L	D+I	-	1: career members only / 2: all members by policy / 3: all members, confirmed by volunteer member interview
2.19	The committee has an education plan for the year (webinars, courses, conferences) and the plan is funded	S2	S1	D	-	1: no plan / 2: plan / 3: plan funded and delivered
2.20	At least one committee member has trained as an internal auditor or has taken part in an audit as a team member (01 Audit Program section 14)	S3	S1	D	-	1: none / 2: one trained / 3: one trained and has taken part in an audit
2.4 Recommendation and response
2.21	Recommendations to the employer are written on Form - JOHSC Recommendation and Employer Response, state the hazard, the evidence, the specific control, the owner and the date, and are numbered and tracked	S1	C3	D	11A.2	1: recommendations verbal or unstructured / 2: on the form / 3: on the form with every field complete and a tracking register
2.22	The employer responds in writing within 21 days, or sooner where the statute requires (J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative), and the response states accept, reject or defer for each item with reasons, interim controls and a revisit date	S1	C3 L	D	11A.2	1: responses late or missing / 2: all within the period / 3: all within the period and structured per item
2.23	Accepted recommendations enter the Corrective Action Register within five working days with an owner and due date, and the committee tracks them to closure	S1	C3	D	11A.2, 11A.3	1: accepted items not tracked / 2: in the register / 3: in the register and the committee’s minutes show closure confirmed with evidence
2.24	Rejected or deferred recommendations are revisited at the date set, and the committee’s follow-up is minuted	S2	K2	D	11A.2	1: no revisit / 2: revisit date set / 3: revisit held and minuted
2.5 Inspection, investigation and audit role
2.25	A committee member takes part in the inspection of every station at least annually, and the schedule shows which member, which station and when (Form - Workplace Inspection Checklist (Station))	S1	C3 L	D+O	-	1: committee inspects some stations / 2: all stations in the year / 3: all stations, and the committee reviews the monthly inspection completion rate before each visit
2.26	Committee inspection reports identify issues, details and the action required with the person who raises the work order, and deficiencies enter the register	S1	K2	D	-	1: reports narrative only / 2: structured / 3: structured, in the register, and the committee tracks closure
2.27	A worker member takes part in the investigation of every serious injury, dangerous occurrence and work refusal, as the applicable statute and the Incident Investigation and Learning program provide	S1	C3 L	D+I	-	1: participation irregular / 2: every qualifying event / 3: every event, and the worker member interviewed describes their part
2.28	The committee carries out its function of auditing compliance with health and safety requirements, through the inspections, the review of the audit reports and the register, and records the result (J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative)	S2	K2 L	D	-	1: function not exercised / 2: exercised through inspections / 3: exercised through inspections, audit review and the register, minuted
2.29	The committee receives and considers every complaint or concern referred to it, records the disposition and tells the person who raised it what happened	S1	C3 L	D+I	11A.2	1: concerns received, disposition unrecorded / 2: disposition recorded / 3: disposition recorded and the person informed, confirmed by interview
2.30	A worker member and an employer member are briefed on the annual audit plan and may attend the opening and closing meetings	S2	S1	D	-	1: not briefed / 2: briefed / 3: briefed and attended
2.31	The committee is consulted before adoption of any new or changed policy, procedure, plan or code of practice with safety content, and the consultation record shows what it said	S1	C3 L	D	-	1: consulted sometimes / 2: consulted on all / 3: consulted on all with traceable changes
2.6 Standing consultants and self-evaluation
2.32	The committee has designated a standing consultant to each Program Improvement Team and recorded the designations (06 Program Improvement Teams section 6.1)	S2	K2	D	-	1: some teams / 2: all teams / 3: all teams, and consultants report back after each attendance
2.33	Safety-sensitive team recommendations (equipment, PPE, procedures, training) have gone through formal committee consultation before adoption, and the consultation is filed with the program records	S2	C3	D	11th ed. labour-management	1: consultation missed for some changes / 2: all changes / 3: all changes, and the committee’s view traceable in the decision
2.34	The committee evaluates its own effectiveness annually using the regulator’s questions where the jurisdiction publishes them (J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative) or the package’s version (membership, meetings, training, recommendation process, functions, employer support), and records the result	S2	K2	D	-	1: no evaluation / 2: evaluation recorded / 3: evaluation recorded and at least one change made from it
2.35	The committee has an annual work plan with the inspection schedule, the education plan, the sub-committee deliverables and the items it will review each quarter	S2	K2	D	-	1: no plan / 2: plan / 3: plan and quarterly review against it
2.36	Attendance in the last 12 months is above 75 per cent for both sides, and absences are covered by alternates	S2	S1	D	-	1: below 60 per cent / 2: 60 to 75 / 3: above 75 with alternates
2.37	Worker members report that they can raise items freely at meetings and that the employer side listens and acts (Edmondson, 1999)DOI	S1	K2	I	11th ed. labour-management	1: worker members report items are discouraged / 2: worker members report items are heard / 3: worker members name a change they caused
2.7 Right to refuse and concern escalation
2.38	A written procedure for the right to refuse unsafe work sets out the member’s steps, the supervisor’s investigation, the committee’s role, the regulator’s role and the protection from reprisal, consistent with the applicable statute (J07 Right to Refuse and Reprisal Protection; CSA Z45001:19)	S1	C3 L	D	-	1: procedure absent or inconsistent / 2: procedure complete / 3: procedure complete and reviewed with the committee in the last three years
2.39	Members and officers, career and volunteer, know the right to refuse exists and can describe the first step	S1	C3 L	I	-	1: fewer than half / 2: majority / 3: majority in every group sampled
2.40	Every refusal in the last three years is recorded with the investigation, the committee’s involvement, the outcome and the absence of reprisal	S1	C3 L	D	-	1: refusals unrecorded / 2: recorded / 3: recorded with all four elements
2.41	A three-step concern escalation (supervisor; committee member or co-chair; regulator) is written, posted and known to members	S1	K2	D+I	11A.2	1: written, not posted / 2: posted / 3: posted and members interviewed describe it
2.42	Work refusals and stop-work calls are reviewed for learning, and the review outcome is shared without naming the member	S2	K2	D	-	1: no review / 2: reviewed / 3: reviewed and shared
2.8 Psychological safety in practice
2.43	Members at sampled stations say they can raise a concern with the committee or their officer and get an answer, and can give an example	S1	C3	I	11th ed. labour-management	1: fewer than half positive / 2: majority positive / 3: majority positive in every group with examples
2.44	The time from a concern reaching the committee to the person hearing back is measured and reported, and the median is within the time the terms of reference set	S2	K2	D	-	1: not measured / 2: measured / 3: measured and within target
2.45	Volunteer members report the same access to the committee as career members, including the ability to attend or submit items on training nights	S1	K2	I	-	1: volunteers do not know how to reach the committee / 2: know the route / 3: have used it
2.46	The committee receives the near-miss and good-catch reporting rate and the stop-work calls recorded, and discusses what the trend means	S2	K2	D	11A.6	1: not received / 2: received / 3: received and discussion minuted
2.47	Meeting norms in practice: a worker member can disagree with a chief officer at the table and the disagreement is recorded, not smoothed over	S2	S1	O+I	-	1: no disagreement ever recorded / 2: recorded in minutes / 3: observed at a meeting and described by members as normal
2.9 Accountability loop
2.48	The committee’s accountability and closed-feedback-loop table is complete: owner (fire chief, for the employer’s duties), doer (co-chairs), verifier (internal audit; the committee’s self-evaluation), feedback (posted minutes; reply to the person who raised the item), closure (register with escalation on its priority scale); and the loop test passes in practice	S1	K2	D+I	-	1: table incomplete / 2: complete / 3: complete and a real example from the year shows the loop closing on the stated path

Loop test. A firefighter hands a worker member a concern about a station extractor with no instructions on Monday. It is on the next agenda, inspected within the month, in the register with facilities as owner, the firefighter has been told, and the minutes show closure with the training record and logbook in place.

5. Effectiveness questions

Answer each from observation or interview only, and record the evidence.

Observe a committee meeting. Do worker members speak as often as employer members, does an item raised by a member reach a decision with a lead and date, and does the overdue corrective action report produce a discussion?
Take the last three recommendations. Did each name a hazard and a specific control, did the response arrive on time and answer the hazard, and did the control arrive?
Ask members, career and volunteer, whether they can raise a concern with the committee or their officer and get an answer, and whether they have done so. What proportion say yes with an example?

6. Interview and observation prompts

(Worker co-chair) How were you selected, and how were the other worker members selected?
(Worker co-chair) Which recommendation of the last year are you proudest of, and what happened to it?
(Employer co-chair) Which manager can resolve a matter the committee cannot, and when did you last go to them?
(Committee member) What training did you receive for this role, and when?
(Volunteer member) Can you attend meetings? Are you paid or credited for them?
(Member, not on the committee) Who is your worker representative? How would you get an item to the committee?
(Member) Have you ever refused unsafe work or seen someone do it? What happened?
(Program team lead) Who is your committee consultant, and when did they last attend?
(Observation) At the meeting: is the monthly injury, exposure and near-miss report presented with numbers? Is the overdue report discussed?
(Observation) At a station: are the latest minutes posted, dated within 10 days of the meeting?
(Observation) Review three inspection reports: does each deficiency have an action, a person and a register entry?

Jurisdiction requirements

This chapter relies on the following legal requirements, which differ by province and territory. Check your jurisdiction’s section on each topic page before adopting it.

Topic	What to check in your jurisdiction	Page
OHS Legislation, Regulator and Enforcement	Who the regulator is, how members reach it, and whether it publishes committee guidance, such as effectiveness questions or a sample inspection checklist, that the committee can use (items 2.34, 2.41)	J01 OHS Legislation, Regulator and Enforcement
OHS Policy and Program	Whether the written program must provide for the committee’s establishment and operation, membership records, rules of procedure, access to management with authority to resolve matters, and the employer’s cooperation (items 2.1, 2.5, 2.6)	J03 OHS Policy and Program
Hazard Assessment and Workplace Inspections	Whether the law fixes how often the workplace must be inspected and what part the committee or representative takes in inspections (items 2.25, 2.26)	J04 Hazard Assessment and Workplace Inspections
Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative	The employee count at which a committee or a representative is required, its composition and co-chairs, how often it must meet and how minutes are kept and posted, its statutory functions, member training and paid time, and the deadline for the employer’s written response to a recommendation (items 2.1 to 2.31)	J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative
Written Procedures and Committee Consultation	Whether the employer must consult the committee when it sets or reviews a written policy, procedure, plan or code of practice (items 2.31, 2.33)	J06 Written Procedures and Committee Consultation
Right to Refuse and Reprisal Protection	The steps of the right to refuse, any limits for firefighters and emergency work, the committee’s and the regulator’s roles, and the protection from reprisal (items 2.38 to 2.42)	J07 Right to Refuse and Reprisal Protection

References

Canadian Federation of Construction Safety Associations [CFCSA]. (2021). National COR accreditation standard (final draft, 2021-06-11). https://cfcsa.ca/pdfs/CFCSA%20National%20COR%20Accreditation%20Standard%20-%20FINAL%20DRAFT,%202021.06.11.pdf

Center for Public Safety Excellence [CPSE]. (2019). Fire and emergency service self-assessment manual (10th ed.). Commission on Fire Accreditation International. https://cpse.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/10th-Edition-FESSAM-Strikethrough-Underline-v.4.pdf

Center for Public Safety Excellence [CPSE]. (2024). Fire and emergency service self-assessment manual (11th ed.). Commission on Fire Accreditation International. https://www.cpse.org/accreditation/cfai10/

CSA Group. (2019). CSA Z45001:19 (R2023), Occupational health and safety management systems: Requirements with guidance for use (adopts ISO 45001:2018 with Canadian deviations). https://www.csagroup.org/store/product/CSA%20Z45001:19/

Edmondson, A. C. (1999). Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams. Administrative Science Quarterly, 44(2), 350–383. doi:10.2307/2666999

Infrastructure Health and Safety Association [IHSA]. (2017). COR program guidelines. https://www.ihsa.ca/pdfs/cor/cor-program-guidelines.pdf

International Organization for Standardization. (2018). ISO 45001:2018, Occupational health and safety management systems: Requirements with guidance for use. https://www.iso.org/standard/63787.html

National Fire Protection Association. (2024). NFPA 1550, Standard for emergency responder health and safety (consolidates NFPA 1500, 1521 and 1561). https://www.nfpa.org/codes-and-standards/nfpa-1550-standard-development/1550