Whether you’re a one-man HVAC company or running a crew of 20, there are five safety documents that Alberta, BC, and Ontario OHS inspectors will ask for when they show up on site. Not having them can mean stop-work orders, fines, or worse.
Here’s what you need and why.
1. Field Level Hazard Assessment (FLHA)
Already covered above, but worth repeating: this is the #1 most requested document during any site inspection. Every worker needs to complete one before starting work each day, and it needs to be signed by everyone on the crew.
Required by: Alberta OHS Code Part 2, WorkSafeBC Regulation 4.5, Ontario OHSA
2. Safe Work Practice (SWP)
A Safe Work Practice describes the general method for completing a specific type of task safely. Unlike an FLHA, it’s not site-specific — it’s your company’s written policy for how a task is done.
Examples:
- SWP for Working at Heights
- SWP for Operating Power Tools
- SWP for Trenching and Excavation
Every trade should have SWPs for their 5-10 most common tasks. You don’t need to write them from scratch — our Safe Work Practice Template is pre-formatted and ready to customize.
3. Emergency Response Plan (ERP)
An ERP documents what happens when things go wrong: who calls 911, where the muster point is, who is the first aid attendant, what happens during a chemical spill.
On sites with more than 5 workers, an ERP is legally required in most Canadian provinces.
The 4 minimum sections your ERP must cover:
- Fire response
- Medical emergency / injury
- Evacuation procedure and muster point
- Environmental incident (spill)
4. Incident/Near-Miss Report Form
Every injury, illness, near-miss, and property damage incident must be documented. Even if no one gets hurt, a near-miss report creates a paper trail that can protect you legally and helps you prevent future incidents.
Many GC contracts now require you to submit incident reports within 24 hours. Don’t be scrambling for a form at that moment.
5. New Worker Orientation Checklist
When a new worker arrives on site — even a temporary subcontractor — you need to orient them to the site hazards, rules, and emergency procedures. A signed orientation checklist is your proof that you did it.
Without it: if that worker gets hurt, you have no documentation that they received safety training.
Get All 5 Documents in One Place
All five documents above are available in our shop — professionally formatted for Canadian OHS compliance, editable in Word, and ready to use today. Starting at $11 CAD each.
