Naloxone kits could soon be mandated for workplaces at risk of opioid overdose
Posted March 1, 2022 9:05 am.
Last Updated March 1, 2022 1:32 pm.
The Ford government is introducing legislation that will require workplaces that are at risk of a worker opioid overdose to have naloxone kits, CityNews has learned.
If passed, it means places like nightclubs and bars will legally have to have a naloxone kit on hand. Construction sites will also be required to have the kits.
The province said around 2,500 people died from opioid-related causes between March 2020 and January 2021, and of those deaths, 30 per cent were construction workers.
Naloxone can temporarily reverse the effects of an opioid overdose and prevent death if administered quickly.
“Everyone in our province knows someone who has been impacted by the opioid epidemic,” said Monte McNaughton, Minister of Labour, Training and Skills Development.
“These are brothers, sisters, mothers and daughters, and we need to do everything in our power to save lives.”
This will be included in a new bill — Working for Workers Act, 2022 — which will also introduce the highest fines in Canada for companies that fail to follow workplace health and safety laws.
Under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, “officers and directors of businesses” convicted of failing to provide a safe work environment, which leads to a worked being severely injured or dying on the job could face fines of up to $1.5 million. Other individuals could face fines of up to $500,000.
