What is the main occupational safety and health law in Canada and who enforces it?

There is no single national law. Employers in federally regulated sectors follow Part II of the Canada Labour Code, enforced by the Labour Program of Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC); every other employer follows the occupational safety and health (OSH) act of the province or territory where the work is done, enforced by that province's regulator.

Short answer

• Canada has 14 OSH regimes: one federal, ten provincial and three territorial, each with its own act, regulations and inspectors.
• Federal: Canada Labour Code, Part II (Code canadien du travail, partie II) and the Canada Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, SOR/86-304. They apply to banks, airlines and airports, railways, interprovincial road transport, shipping and ports, pipelines, telecommunications and broadcasting, federal Crown corporations and the federal public service. The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) puts this at about 6% of workers.
• Provinces and territories: about 94% of workers. Examples: Ontario's Occupational Health and Safety Act (R.S.O. 1990, c. O.1), Quebec's Loi sur la santé et la sécurité du travail (RLRQ c. S-2.1), British Columbia's Workers Compensation Act Part 2 with the OHS Regulation, and Alberta's Occupational Health and Safety Act (S.A. 2020, c. O-2.2) with the OHS Code.
• A company with sites in several provinces follows the law of each province at each site, unless the business is federally regulated.
• The Criminal Code (s. 217.1) and WHMIS, the chemical hazard communication system, apply across all jurisdictions.

How the federal and provincial systems divide the work

Labour law in Canada is mainly a provincial matter; the federal Code covers only federal works, undertakings and businesses. Section 123 of the Canada Labour Code applies Part II to employment on or in connection with any federal work, undertaking or business, to federal Crown corporations and, through the Federal Public Sector Labour Relations Act, to the federal public administration.

The test is the nature of the business, not the size of the employer or where its head office is. A trucking company that regularly crosses provincial borders is federally regulated; a local delivery company in one city is not. When in doubt, ask the Labour Program or the provincial regulator before setting up the OSH system.

In Quebec and British Columbia the same body runs prevention, inspection and workers' compensation. In Ontario and Alberta, the ministry inspects and a separate workers' compensation board pays claims.

What the laws have in common

Although the texts differ, the main structure is shared, which helps companies working in several provinces:

1. A general duty on the employer. Federal section 124: every employer must ensure that the health and safety at work of every person it employs is protected. Ontario's section 25(2)(h) requires every precaution reasonable in the circumstances for the protection of a worker.
2. The internal responsibility system. Employers, supervisors and workers each have duties; committees and representatives give workers a voice.
3. Three worker rights: to know, to participate and to refuse dangerous work.
4. Regulator powers. Inspectors can enter workplaces, issue orders or directions to correct contraventions and stop the use of a machine, place or activity that is a danger (federal s. 145).
5. Offences with due diligence as the defence. For example, the federal maximum on indictment is 1,000,000 CAD and/or two years' imprisonment (s. 148), and Ontario's maximum for a corporation is 2,000,000 CAD (s. 66, since December 2024).

Common mistakes

• Looking for one national "OSHA-type" regulator: CCOHS is a national information institute, not an enforcement body.
• Applying the head office province's law to all sites.
• Treating the workers' compensation board as the only authority: it handles claims and premiums, while in Ontario and Alberta the ministry enforces OSH law.

Related on excodex

• Occupational safety and health in Canada: law, authorities and employer duties
• What are the penalties for breaking occupational safety rules in Canada?
• How and within what time must a workplace accident be reported in Canada?
• Occupational safety and health in the United States

Standards and further reading

• Canada Labour Code, R.S.C. 1985, c. L-2, Part II, consolidated text current to 19 October 2026: https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/L-2/
• Canada Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, SOR/86-304: https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/regulations/SOR-86-304/
• Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. O.1 (last amended 2025, c. 13): https://www.ontario.ca/laws/statute/90o01
• Alberta Occupational Health and Safety Act, S.A. 2020, c. O-2.2 (office consolidation current as of 11 June 2025): https://kings-printer.alberta.ca/documents/Acts/O02P2.pdf
• CCOHS, Health and Safety Legislation in Canada, Introduction: https://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/legisl/legislation/intro.html

This article is general occupational safety and health information prepared by the excodex editorial team. It does not replace the applicable legislation, standards, manufacturers' instructions or the assessment of a competent OSH professional or occupational physician.