Safety headgear — Employer responsibilities

On September 1, 2021, the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Regulation related to safety headgear, such as hard hats, was changed. The OHS Regulation now requires employers to conduct a risk assessment and follow the hierarchy of controls before workers start an assignment in a work area where there is a risk of head injury.

Employer responsibilities

Keeping workers safe on the job is a key responsibility for all employers. In the past, many employers relied on hard hats as the best way to protect workers from head injury on construction sites and other worksites.

Today, under Part 8 of the OHS Regulation, employers must take steps to eliminate or minimize the risk of head injury from falling, flying, or thrown objects before requiring workers to wear safety headgear.

There will still be some workplaces where an employer can’t eliminate or reduce the risk to a level that protects worker safety. In those cases, hard hats are still needed.

Assessing and controlling risks

As an employer, you have a responsibility to identify the hazards that can cause harm to your workers. Review Safety headgear: Assessing and controlling risk of head injury for more information about controlling head injury risks in your workplace.

Step 1: Conduct a risk assessment

Start by identifying risks using the Safety headgear: Risk management template and considering the risks listed below.

If you have multiple work locations, be sure to do a risk assessment for each workplace. The hazards, and the risks they pose, may be different from place to place.
Consider the workplace and its layout, as well as the task or activities that might put workers at risk of head injury.
For each hazard, you need to be clear about the groups of people who might be harmed. Certain groups of workers may have specific requirements according to the OHS Regulation.
Consider including your workers in the risk assessment process to ensure their voices are heard, and their feedback is acted upon.

Head injury risks to consider:

Falling objects	Objects falling or being thrown from height Handling or manipulating objects above head level Assembly or disassembly of equipment, including scaffolds Working in trenches or excavations Tree trimming Pedestrian traffic routes that go under catwalks or conveyors, or work at elevations with tools and materials
Struck by or struck against objects or surfaces	Working in, around, or under structures with low clearance Contact with materials such as ends of scaffolding, uncapped formwork, or rebar Working around protruding or unpredictable machinery or equipment Working in restricted or awkward environments with insufficient headroom (e.g., in crawl spaces, on scaffolds)
Mobile equipment	Working on or near mobile equipment with booms, buckets, chains, or other moving arm accessories Working where material can be spilled from buckets
Other conditions	Working in situations where the risk is unknown, unpredictable, and/or capable of changing and posing a risk of head injury Hair entanglement in machinery Electrical hazards, such as working around exposed energized conductors Work at elevations with a risk of falling

Step 2: Follow the hierarchy of controls

When considering how to reduce the risk, there's a certain order you should follow. This is called the hierarchy of controls. It's important to follow the hierarchy, as shown below, rather than start with the easiest control measures.

Head injury control measures

Before requiring safety headgear on a worksite where there is a risk of head injury, you must first take measures to:

Eliminate the risk.
Minimize the risk by using engineering and/or administrative controls.
Require safety headgear where the risk cannot be eliminated or minimized.

Examples

The following are examples of each level of control in relation to eliminating or reducing head injury risks.

Elimination or substitution	Exclusion zone or safe zones that eliminate the need for head protection
Engineering controls	Safety nets to catch falling objects Temporary or permanent solid barriers to prevent objects from falling, being thrown, or sent flying from work areas Temporary or permanent physical barriers to prevent workers from entering hazard areas Tethering and securing tools, materials, and equipment so they can’t fall Using automation or other changes to the workplace so workers don’t need to enter areas where a risk of head injury exists
Administrative controls	Requiring work to stop when other workers are underneath elevated work areas Creating designated pedestrian-safe walkways that are free from overhead hazards Using spotters to alert workers to vacate areas when overhead hazards are present Using signs to alert workers to overhead hazard areas and, if necessary, to communicate the need for safety headgear before entering those areas
PPE	Use of safety headgear such as hard hats, bump caps, or helmets Note that safety headgear is the lowest level of control. If elimination, engineering controls, and/or administrative controls are not adequate to minimize the risk of head injury to the lowest level practicable, safety headgear must be worn.

For each risk identified in Step 1, follow the hierarchy of controls to identify which controls you will use to eliminate or minimize the risk, in consultation with workers, supervisors, and your joint health and safety committee.

What does this mean for workers who can’t wear a hard hat?

If a worker can’t wear a hard hat because of religious headgear, such as a turban, or other reasons, you may have to offer accommodation. For more information about this, please see OHS Guideline G-P2-21(1).

Workers are encouraged to talk to their:

Employer or supervisor to find out what they have done to eliminate or reduce risks to the lowest level practicable before relying on safety headgear to protect them from head injuries.
Worker representative or joint health and safety committee at their workplace about what their employer has done to reduce risks so that hard hats aren’t needed.

Workers
Learn about your rights and responsibilities, and what the safety headgear regulation means for you. Learn more.