COVID-related Safe Work Plans are not required to be in place at this time. Please refer to this page and the COVID-19 SWP Template below for reference purposes if needed.Ā
Each academic program and college department should have a COVID related Safe Work Plan in place to guide the work of the employees. These SWPs should be developed collaboratively between techs, faculty, and employees, but will need to be reviewed and approved by the Chair/Dean or Manager. These plans will need to be reviewed and made current as public health measures continue to evolve.
Important:
- Please ensure a copy of the SWPs is available during course delivery and/or posted to the safety information board.
- Please also ensure that SWPs are shared with all employees engaging in activities covered by the SWP.
COVID-19 Safe Work Template
This COVID-19 SWP template has been designed for your use to assist in the development of your Safe Work Plan. It can be used by academic labs as well as departments looking to add a COVID-19 SWP specific to their space and employees/students.
Winter 2022 – COVID-19 SWP Template – Updated Jan 21/22
*Current update reflects the change to masking requirement – Procedural Masking will be required on campus starting Jan 3/21*
IMPORTANT NOTES:
- Please save this download to your computer. To complete, open the file with Adobe Acrobat from the saved folder location.
- Save file as “COVID-19: Academic Lab/Activity/Department”
Developing a COVID-19 Safe Work Plan
The COVID-19 safety protocols implemented on campus including vaccine requirements, daily screening protocols, and required procedural masks reduce the likelihood of virus transmission.
There are a number of approved sector-specific H&S guidelines that will assist in the development of the lab and/or workplace safe work plan. You may find a complete listing of all provincially endorsed sector guidance documents here.
Developing your Safe Work Plan
The key to developing a safe work plan is to understand the COVID-19 related risks associated with your lab/workspace and then to document how the risks will be mitigated.
Note that different protocols offer different protection. Wherever possible, use the protocols that offer the highest level of protection and add additional protocols as required. You may refer to the standard hierarchy of controls when developing your plans.
First level protection (elimination): Limit the number of people in your workplace where possible by implementing work-from-home arrangements, establishing occupancy limits, rescheduling work tasks, or other means. Rearrange workspaces to ensure that workers are physically distanced, according to public health measures, from co-workers, customers, and members of the public.
Second level protection (engineering controls): If you canāt always maintain physical distancing, install barriersĀ such as plexiglass to separate people.
Third level protection (administrative controls): Establish rules and guidelines, such as cleaning protocols, telling workers to not share tools, or implementing one-way doors or walkways.
Fourth level protection (PPE): If the first three levels of protection arenāt enough to control the risk, consider the use of masks. Ensure masks are selected and cared for appropriately and that workers are using masks correctly.