Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 45.51
Liaison Mat Thijssen
Submission Date Nov. 6, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Waterloo
PA-14: Workplace Health and Safety

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.23 / 2.00 Mat Thijssen
Sustainability Manager
Sustainability Office
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Please enter data in the table below:
Performance Year Baseline Year
Number of recordable workplace injuries and occupational disease cases 69 103
Full-time equivalent of employees 5,874 5,078
Number of injuries and cases per FTE employee 0.01 0.02

Start and end dates of the performance year and baseline year (or three-year periods):
Start Date End Date
Performance Year Jan. 1, 2017 Dec. 31, 2017
Baseline Year Jan. 1, 2010 Dec. 31, 2012

A brief description of when and why the workplace health and safety baseline was adopted (e.g. in sustainability plans and policies or in the context of other reporting obligations):
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Percentage reduction in workplace injuries and occupational disease cases per FTE employee from baseline:
42.09

Number of workplace injuries and occupational disease cases per 100 FTE employees, performance year:
1.17

A brief description of the institution’s workplace health and safety initiatives, including how workers are engaged in monitoring and advising on health and safety programs:
Through Policy #34 – Health, Safety and Environment, the University strives to provide a safe and healthy work and educational environment for its students, employees, visitors and contractors. The University insists on compliance with legislative requirements and regulations contained in, but not limited to, the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act (WSIA), the Fire Prevention and Protection Act (FPPA), the Environmental Protection Act (EPA), and University of Waterloo policies and procedures. The Safety Office provides the majority of health and safety training required on campus, currently providing courses in a wide variety of health and safety topics in both online and classroom format. Health and Safety programs currently in place at the University of Waterloo include: asbestos management, biosafety, compressed gas and cryogenic liquids, chemical safety, confined space, electrical hazards, ergonomics, fieldwork, fire safety, first aid, hazard recognition and control, incident management, laboratory safety, laser safety, lockout, nanomaterials safety, personal protective equipment, radiation safety, respiratory protection, return to work, slips trips and falls, working at heights, Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS), workplace harassment, workplace inspections, workplace violence prevention, and x-ray safety. Workers are involved in monitoring and advising on programs through the Joint Health and Safety Committees, as required by the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act. Committees are populated by both management and workers, and have resource persons available to assist with activities.

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
This baseline was established for STARS reporting and is not reflective of health and safety reporting done elsewhere. 2010-2012 was selected to be aligned with baselines developed for most other indicators within STARS, and taken as a 3 year average between 2010 and 2012 to avoid a single-year bias. Data is compiled by the Safety Office based on medical aid and lost time injuries through the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, as well as occupational illness injuries as reported through the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act. The numbers reported are a combination of both metrics. The Full Time Equivalent numbers reported here are different than those reported publically by the University of Waterloo as part of its annual Health, Safety, and Environment report. The reported numbers here are employee FTEs aligned with all other STARS indicators, whereas the FTEs reported as part of the HS&E report reflect all paid positions (student or staff), which would be double-counted within the STARS framework for other credits. For transparency, with the same reporting periods the baseline and performance year FTEs as reported through Waterloo’s HS&E reports would be 6,743 and 8,373, respectively.

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.