The Key Principles of the IRS

There are a few key principles of the IRS that help to clarify it:

1. The responsibility for identifying and addressing workplace hazards belongs to the people who actually work in the workplace (workers, supervisors, managers, owners, suppliers, and service-providers).
   • Inclusive Approach – Everyone is involved in the IRS. It is a multi-party philosophy
2. The greatest responsibility for creating and maintaining a safe and healthy workplace is shared by all of these groups, to the extent of their authority and ability.
   • Personal Responsibility – Each individual is personally responsible for identifying occupational health and safety concerns and seeking solutions.
3. The IRS includes a plan for participation in safety matters and the flow of information about safety, as well as the right to refuse unsafe work. Cooperation – It is the goal of all to protect safety, health and life. This is not a bargaining process.
   • Information Flow – There are no secrets under the OHS Act (except medical records and legitimate trade secrets).
   • Pro-active Approach – The OHS Act is not based on a philosophy of waiting for incidents or accidents to happen or occupational disease to materialize. We must take action to prevent and reduce risk and exposure. People in the workplace are the first to recognize the pre-conditions of a potential injury or disease.
   • Accountability – Everyone in the workplace is accountable for occupational health and the safety of their co-workers
4. The Occupational Health and Safety Division of the Department of Labour and Workforce Development plays a supportive role. It establishes and clarifies roles and responsibilities for all workplace parties. The Division assists the meeting of these responsibilities, and intervenes when the responsibilities aren’t met. It doesn’t assume the responsibility for creating and maintaining safe and healthy workplaces.