Supervising for Safety at VIU

Who is a Supervisor at VIU?

According to the BC Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, A supervisor is a person who instructs, directs, and controls workers in the performance of their duties. A supervisor can be any worker — management or staff — who meets this definition, whether or not they have the supervisor title. If someone in the workplace has supervisor responsibilities, that person is responsible for worker health and safety.

Supervisors include:

  • Members of the VIU Senior Management Team
  • Directors
  • Campus Administrators
  • Deans
  • Associate Deans
  • Registrar
  • Associate Registrar
  • Managers
  • Assistant Managers

Supervisors also include a person who manages, instructs, directs, or controls other VIU community members acting in their VIU capacity when engaged in VIU work and learning activities, including studying. This includes:

  • Professors
  • Instructors
  • VIU Biosafety Permit Holders
  • Research Principal Investigators.

  • Ensure the health and safety of all workers and VIU community members (students, etc.) under your direct supervision.
  • Know the WorkSafeBC, municipal and federal health and safety requirements that apply to the work under your supervision and make sure those requirements are, at a minimum, met.
  • Ensure workers under your supervision are aware of all known hazards and the controls that are in place to prevent exposure to them.
  • Ensure workers under your supervision have the appropriate personal protective equipment, which is being used properly, regularly inspected, and maintained.

  • Engage with your workers to ensure workplace safety controls are realistic for the task and are being used properly

  • Report and investigate incidents and injuries using the VIU Safety Incident Reporting System
  • Ensure regular inspections of work areas are documented and corrective actions, the ways to prevent incidents, accidents or injuries in the future, are identified
  • Be knowledgeable of the regulatory requirements specific to the work tasks that you supervise
  • Implement VIU safe work procedures and other regulated hazard controls into the work or learning tasks that you supervise
  • Cooperate with the VIU Joint Occupational Health and Safety Committee, WorkSafeBC, Regulators, and Health and Safety Services.

WorkSafeBC offers a free online course designed to help supervisors at VIU meet their workplace safety obligations.

Access the course at http://www.supervisingforsafety.com/

JHA (Job Hazard Analysis): The process of breaking down the tasks in a specific job to identify all hazards or potential hazards that the individual performing the job may be exposed to, and control methods that can work to prevent or eliminate the risk of exposure to the hazard, leading to injury or illness.

Managers can use this template to document the hazards of each job/position that they supervise. 

Job Hazard Analysis
Job Hazard Analysis Template

Safety Toolbox Talks

Start the day with your workers with a few minutes of useful conversation about effective ways to prevent hazards at work and protect employees from injuries on the job. A Toolbox Talk is an informal group discussion that focuses on a particular safety issue. Use these Toolbox Talks to spark discussion and action at the beginning of the shift. Toolbox Talks guide workers and teams through preventing many hazards on the job.

Topics to consider:

Heat Stress

Earthquake Preparedness (ShakeOutBC)

Electrical Safety: Lockout Tagout

Severe Weather Procedure

PPE requirements for staff that conduct snow and ice removal on campus

Preventing Slips, trips and Falls

Working at Height: Fall Protection

Ergonomics: Preventing Sprains and strains