Free CCOHS course offers guidance on returning to work safely

The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) has released an e-course Pandemic Planning: Reopening for Business to help organizations across Canada safely return to work during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The course guides employers, supervisors, managers and workers on how to prepare for a safe return to work, and what controls are needed to be put in place to protect everyone and minimize the impact of the pandemic.

Topics covered in the course include how coronavirus spreads and its symptoms, employer and worker duties and responsibilities in a COVID-19 return to business plan, methods of control — including cleaning and disinfecting, how to manage the workplace and prepare workers for a safe return, and understanding the impacts of a pandemic on mental health.

The free course is available on the CCOHS website in English and French.

“We know that as we start our return to the workplace and resuming activities outside of the home, things will not be as they were before the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Anne Tennier, president and CEO of CCOHS in Hamilton, Ont.

“Businesses and organizations are looking for information and guidance. We are providing that with this course to help minimize the spread of infection, and help employers and workers return to work as safely as possible.”