Safety Program — Alberta OHS
An Alberta safety program is a written document that describes how an employer will identify and control hazards, train workers, investigate incidents, and continuously improve safety performance. Employers with 20 or more workers are legally required to have a written safety program under the Alberta OHS Act.
A safety program is the written foundation of a workplace safety system. It describes what the employer will do to keep workers safe — not in vague terms, but in specific procedures, responsibilities, and processes. In Alberta, a written safety program is legally required for employers with 20 or more workers, and it is the starting point for COR certification.
What a safety program must contain
Alberta OHS legislation requires a safety program to address: hazard identification and assessment, safe work procedures, worker training, inspections, incident investigation and reporting, and emergency response. The program must be in writing and must be reviewed at least annually.
A safety program that exists only on paper — that workers have never seen and supervisors do not follow — does not meet the legal requirement. The program must be implemented, not just written.
Safety program vs safety management system
A safety program is the written documentation. A safety management system (SMS) is the broader system — the documentation plus the people, processes, and culture that make it work. COR certification audits the SMS, not just the written program.
Many Alberta employers have a written safety program but a weak SMS. The gap between what is written and what actually happens in the field is the most common finding in COR audits and OHS inspections.
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