Instructions

This short gap analysis checklist will help you to assess the current state of the health and safety
program in your workplace.

Below are the elements and components that you need to consider to have an Occupational
Health and Safety Program that meets minimum legal requirements.

When answering the questions below, you can make only one choice for each question: Yes, No,
or N/A. Use "N/A" (not applicable) for a component that doesn't apply to your workplace, for
example your company does not perform work in a confined space. If there isn't an option to
mark a particular component as N/A, it means you need to have it!

The "How to Verify" column indicates which method(s) should be used for determining whether
your program has the required component:

 D = Documentation review
 O = Observing the activity in your workplace
 I = Interviewing applicable employees from all organizational levels
After answering all the gap analysis questions, a report will be generated that shows what you
still need to do to develop a compliant Health and Safety Program. This will provide you with a
checklist to help you to focus on the gaps in your program. It also provides links to relevant
resources for information on ways to improve your program.

Note: CCOHS will not share the results of your Gap Analysis with any third parties. See
our Terms and Conditions for the details of our privacy policy.
1. LEADERSHIPHealth and Safety Policy

Question

Do you have a Health and Safety Policy that is signed and D

dated within the last 12 months? Yes

No
Roles, Responsibilities and Accountabilities

Question

Do you have written documentation that outlines the D

responsibilities of all workplace parties? Yes

No

Does the general performance evaluation of employees and D

contractors include health and safety performance criteria? I Yes
O
No

Is everybody aware of their health and safety D

responsibilities, accountabilities and the consequences of I Yes
non-conformance with the Health and Safety Policy? O
No
Health and Safety Committee or Representative
 Question

Have you selected a Health and Safety Representative or D

established a Health and Safety Committee? I Yes

No

Have you developed terms of reference for the Health and D

Safety Committee or Representative? I Yes

No
2. ORGANIZELegal Requirements

Question

Have you identified which legal requirements apply to your D

health and safety program? Yes

No
Hazard Identification and Risk Assessment

Question

Have you identified all jobs and tasks that present a hazard? D
O Yes

No

Did you rate the loss potential of each identified hazard? D

Yes

No

Have you applied controls to eliminate or reduce the D

identified risks? O Yes

No

Have you developed and implemented safe operating D

procedures for every main activity rated as a major loss O Yes
potential?
No

Do you have a procedure for reporting injuries and D

illnesses? Yes

No

Do you have a procedure for reporting hazards? D

I Yes

No
 Question

Are all employees trained to identify and report hazards? D

I Yes

No

Do you have a procedure that describes the step-by-step D

process for work refusals? I Yes

No
3. IMPLEMENTHazard Prevention and Control Programs - Mandatory

Have you developed and implemented the following hazard prevention and control
programs to ensure compliance with applicable health and safety legal requirements
and industry standards/procedures?

Component

Workplace inspection D
I Yes
O
No

Incident investigation D
I Yes
O
No

Emergency response D
I Yes
O
No

First aid D
I Yes
O
No

Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System D

(WHMIS) I Yes
O
No

Personal protective equipment D

I Yes
O
No

Preventive maintenance D
I Yes
O
No
Hazard Prevention and Control Programs - Workplace Specific
 Have you developed and implemented the hazard programs required in the
legislation, such as those listed below? If the hazard does not exist in your workplace,
you must have documentation indicating the workplace was checked and a specific
program was not required.

Component

Lockout/Tagout D
I Yes
O
No

N/A

Confined spaces D
I Yes
O
No

N/A

Designated substances D
I Yes
O
No

N/A

Hot work D
I Yes
O
No

N/A

Process and equipment pre-start-up program D

I Yes
O
No

N/A
Training and Communication Needs, Management and Records

Question

Do you periodically identify and review training needs? D

I Yes

No

Do you have records of training? D

I Yes

No
 Question

Do you regularly evaluate training and keep records of the D

evaluations? I Yes

No

Do you provide health and safety orientation for new D

employees, employees returning after a long absence, and I Yes
employees that have been recently promoted?
No

Do you have a system to communicate and receive feedback D

on all health and safety activities? I Yes

No
Training Topics

Do you provide training on the following topics?

Topic

Health and safety legislated responsibilities and rights D

I Yes

No

Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System D

(WHMIS) I Yes

No

Material handling D
I Yes

No

Workplace inspection D
I Yes

No

Incident investigation D
I Yes

No

Emergency response procedure D

I Yes

No

Personal protective equipment (PPE) selection, use and D

maintenance I Yes

No
 Do you provide training on the following topics?

Topic

Specific training for Health and Safety Committee members D

or Health and Safety Representative I Yes

No

Specific training and certification (e.g. first aid) D

I Yes

No

Workplace specific hazard training (e.g. working alone, D

working in remote areas, transportation of dangerous I Yes
goods, traffic control, designated substances, etc.)
No
Posted and/or Available Health and Safety Materials

Question

Are required health and safety documents posted in D

accessible locations? O Yes

No
Documentation

Question

Do you have a system to document health and safety D

activities and maintain records? Yes

No
4. VERIFYInternal Audit

Question

Do you have a process to evaluate the effectiveness of your D

program? I Yes

No

Do you evaluate the program periodically (at least once a D

year) and take actions to correct any non-conformances or I Yes
to improve the program?
No
5. IMPROVESenior Management Involvement and Commitment
 Question

Is health and safety a standing topic on the senior D

management agenda? Yes

No

Are health and safety trends reviewed by senior D

management? Yes

No

Is senior management actively supporting the Health and D

Safety Committee or Representative? Yes

No

Is senior management inspecting the workplace regularly, D

based on an established schedule (at least once a year)? Yes

No
SUBMIT

CLEAR
Date Modified: 2019-08-09

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