17. (1) Every employee, while at work, shall

(a) take every reasonable precaution in the circumstances to protect the employee's own health and safety and that of other persons at or near the workplace;

(b) co-operate with the employer and with the employee's fellow employees to protect the employee's own health and safety and that of other persons at or near the workplace;

(c) take every reasonable precaution in the circumstances to ensure that protective devices, equipment or clothing required by the employer, this Act or the regulations are used or worn;

(d) consult and co-operate with the joint occupational health and safety committee, where such a committee has been established at the workplace, or the health and safety representative, where one has been selected at the workplace;

(e) co-operate with any person performing a duty or exercising a power conferred by this Act or the regulations; and

(f) comply with this Act and the regulations.

(2) Where an employee believes that any condition, device, equipment, machine, material or thing or any aspect of the workplace is or may be dangerous to the employee's health or safety or that of any other person at the workplace, the employee shall

(a) immediately report it to a supervisor;

(b) where the matter is not remedied to the employee's satisfaction, report it to the committee or the representative, if any; and

(c) where the matter is not remedied to the employee's satisfaction after the employee reports in accordance with clauses (a) and (b), report it to the Division.

2. In these regulations,

(a) "Act" means the Occupational Health and Safety Act ;

(aa) "adequate" means sufficient to protect a person from injury or damage to health;

(b) "ALI" means the Automotive Lift Institute;

(ba) "angle of repose" means the angle with the horizontal at which material will no longer flow freely;

(c) "ANSI" means the American National Standards Institute;

(ca) "approved" means approved by the Department or by an agency or authority designated or selected by the Department to make approvals;

(d) "ASME" means the American Society of Mechanical Engineers;

(e) "ASTM" means the American Society for Testing and Materials;

(ea) "CGA" means the Compressed Gas Association;

(f) "CGSB" means the Canadian General Standards Board;

(g) "competent person" means a person who is

(i) qualified because of their knowledge, training and experience to do the assigned work in a manner that ensures the health and safety of every person in the workplace, and

(ii) knowledgeable about the provisions of the Act and regulations that apply to the assigned work, and about potential or actual danger to health or safety associated with the assigned work;

(ga) "compressed air" means air mechanically raised to a pressure higher than atmospheric pressure;

(h) "CSA" means the Canadian Standards Association;

(i) "demolition" means the destruction or removal of all, or part, of an existing building or structure;

(ia) "Department" means the Department of Labour and Advanced Education;

(j) "designated" means, in relation to an employer, appointed in writing by the employer;

(k) "electrical installation" means the wires, machinery, apparatus, appliances, devices, material and equipment used or intended for use for the generation, transmission, distribution, supply and use of electrical power or energy, and includes a power line and power line equipment;

(l) "engineer" means a person who is registered as a member or licensed to practise under the Engineering Profession Act and is competent to do the work being performed;

(m) "firefighter" means

(i) an employee who provides fire suppression services to the public from a fire department within a municipality or local service district, or

(ii) an industrial firefighter;

(n) "guardrail" means a fall protection system consisting of vertical and horizontal members that

(i) are capable of withstanding concentrated forces, as prescribed in these regulations or an applicable standard,

(ii) warn of a fall hazard, and

(iii) reduce the risk of a fall;

(o) "hazardous substance" means chemical or biological material, dangerous goods within the meaning of the Dangerous Goods Transportation Act or a controlled product within the meaning of the Hazardous Products Act (Canada) that is likely to, because of its harmful nature, cause injury or damage to the health or safety of a person exposed to it;

(p) "hoist" means a device or equipment and its structure used for lifting or lowering material, including cranes, an automotive lift, a winch, a chain fall or other similar device, but does not include a lift truck, a power operated elevating work platform, a device to which the Elevators and Lifts Act applies or a hoist that operates in a shaft in the underground at a mine;

(pa) "ITSDF" means the Industrial Truck Standards Development Foundation;

(q) "industrial firefighter" means an employee who

(i) is designated to fight fires at the employee's place of employment, and

(ii) is employed by an employer who does not, in the normal course of its business, provide fire suppression services to the public;

(qa) "latest version" means, in relation to a standard or other publication, the latest edition of the standard or publication as supplemented, amended, added to, replaced or superseded;

(r) "lift truck" means a lift truck as defined in the latest version of ANSI standard ANSI/ITSDF B56.1, "Safety Standard for Low Lift and High Lift Trucks";

(s) "locked out" means to have

(i) isolated the energy source or sources from a machine, equipment, tool or electrical installation,

(ii) dissipated any residual energy in a system, and

(iii) secured the isolation of the energy source or sources by an inhibiting device that is operated by a key or other process,

and to have performed a "lock-out" has a similar meaning;

(t) "machine" Repealed. [N.S. Reg. 52/2000, s. 1]

(u) "manufacturer's specifications" means

(i) the written instructions of a manufacturer of a machine, material, tool or equipment that outline the manner in which the machine, material, tool or equipment is to be erected, installed, assembled, started, operated, used, handled, stored, stopped, adjusted, carried, maintained, repaired, inspected, serviced, tested, cleaned or dismantled, and

(ii) a manufacturer's instruction, operating or maintenance manual and drawings respecting a machine, tool or equipment;

(ua) "mobile crane" means a mobile crane to which the latest version of CSA standard CSA Z150 , "Safety Code on Mobile Cranes" applies;

(v) "NFPA" means the National Fire Protection Association;

(va) "overhead crane" means any mechanical device or structure that is used to raise, lower and move material that travels overhead and that incorporates a

(i) power driven drum, bridge and cable or rope,

(ii) single or multiple girder, and

(iii) moveable bridge carrying a moveable or fixed hoisting mechanism,

but does not include wall cranes, cantilever gantry cranes and semi-gantry cranes;

(vb) "personal flotation device" means personal protective equipment that is capable of supporting a person with their head above water without the direct effort of the person wearing the equipment;

(w) "power line" means the above-ground or underground wiring that is used to distribute electricity;

(x) "power line equipment" means the components that are required to distribute electricity by means of a power line;

(y) "power operated elevating work platform" means a mobile horizontal working surface that provides access and support to a person at a workplace, and that is elevated and lowered by means of a mechanism and [that complies with] Part 23: Scaffolds and Other Elevated Work Platforms, of the Workplace Health and Safety Regulations made under the Act, including a standard listed in subsection (4) thereof;

(z) "powered mobile equipment" means self-propelled equipment that is designed to operate on land in conditions other than a public highway, but does not include equipment primarily designed to transport persons, a lift truck or a power operated elevating work platform;

(aa) "SAE" means the Society of Automotive Engineers;

(ab) "structural fire-fighting" means the activities of rescue, fire suppression and conservation of property from fires involving buildings, structures, vehicles, vessels, aircraft or other large objects constructed by human effort;

(ac) "surface mine" means a work or undertaking, other than a trench, for the purpose of opening up, proving, removing or extracting any metallic or non-metallic mineral or mineral bearing substance, rock, earth, clay, sand or gravel by means of an open excavation, and includes a pit or quarry;

(ad) "tower crane" means any mechanical device or structure that

(i) incorporates a power-driven drum and cable or rope and a vertical mast or tower and a jib,

(ii) is of the traveling, fixed or climbing type, and

(iii) is used exclusively for raising, lowering and moving material;

(ae)"trench" means an excavation in which the excavation depth exceeds the excavation width;

(af) "work area" means a location at the workplace at which an employee or self-employed person is or is likely to be working;

(ag) "worked" means drilled, blasted, extracted, excavated, loaded or subjected to other similar work.

[N.S. Reg. 52/2000, s. 1; 151/2003; 53/2013, ss. 1, 93]

9. (1) An employer shall ensure that adequate personal protective equipment or devices required for an assigned task are used, based on

(a) the nature of the task;

(b) the location and conditions of the workplace; and

(c) any hazards that may affect the health and safety of persons in the workplace.

(2) Where personal protective equipment or devices are required under the Act or these regulations, an employer shall ensure that

(a) an employee receives adequate training in the proper use and care of the personal protective equipment or devices; and

(b) an employee wears or uses the personal protective equipment or devices in accordance with the instruction and training provided.

(3) An employer shall ensure that all personal protective equipment or devices required under the Act or these regulations are

(a) maintained by a competent person; and

(b) tested or visually inspected before each use,

in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications.

(4) Where a person identifies any defect in personal protective equipment or devices that may impair the adequacy of the equipment or devices, the employer shall ensure that the personal protective equipment or devices are not used until they are repaired.

[N.S. Reg. 52/2000, s. 3; 53/2013, s. 93]

154. (1) An employer at a project shall ensure that

(a) work is completed on any component designed to support or give added support to a part of the project before proceeding with any work that adds to the load on that part;

(b) a free standing wall of brick, concrete blocks or similar materials greater than 2 m in height is braced from both sides until the wall is attached to a rigid structure and the mortar has set adequately;

(c) a free standing wall or structure designed to support roof components or any load is braced in an adequate manner to prevent collapse of the wall or structure; and

(d) a column is erected in an adequate manner to prevent collapse of the column and, where further support is required to ensure that the column does not collapse, braced in an adequate manner.

(2) An employer at a project shall use bracing or shoring for support beneath floor levels where concrete is being poured.

(3) An employer at a project shall

(a) ensure that bracing or shoring is designed by an engineer and is erected, maintained and dismantled in accordance with the engineer's certified specifications; or

(b) retain the bracing or shoring at all floor levels beneath the floor where concrete is being poured until the removal of the bracing or shoring is authorized in writing by an engineer.

(4) An employer shall ensure that any bracing or shoring referred to in this Section complies with the latest version of CSA standard CSA S269.1 , "Falsework for Construction Purposes."

(5) An employer shall ensure that footings for shoring and bracing are designed to support the maximum load likely to be imposed, without excessive settlement or deformation.

[N.S. Reg. 53/2013, s. 69]

166. (1) Where a person may enter an excavation or trench and a wall of an excavation or trench is greater than 1.2 m in height, an employer shall ensure that the wall is supported by adequate shoring or bracing, or that an adequate trench cage is used, except where the employer is able to establish that the excavation or trench

(a) is cut in sound and stable rock;

(b) is sloped

(i) to within 1.2 m of the bottom of the excavation or trench, or

(ii) where soil overburden is located above an excavation or trench excavated in sound and stable rock, for the entire overburden,

and the slope does not exceed 1 m of vertical rise to each 1 m of horizontal run; or

(c) is one that a person does not enter within a horizontal distance from the walls of the excavation or trench that is equal to the height of the walls.

(2) Where the walls or crests of an excavation or trench are cut in rock, an employer shall ensure that the walls and crests are adequately supported by rock bolts, wire mesh or other means of adequate protection, if necessary, to ensure safe working conditions.

(3) Where powered mobile equipment is used near the edge of an excavation or trench, an employer shall ensure that any shoring, bracing or caging for the excavation or trench is adequate to support the increased load.

(4) An employer shall ensure that the walls of an excavation or trench are stripped of loose rock or other material that could slide, roll or fall on a person in the excavation or trench and injure that person.

(5) Despite clause. (1)(b), an employer may slope the walls of an excavation or trench at an angle that exceeds a 1 m vertical rise to each 1 m horizontal run where an engineer has certified in writing that the steeper slope will be stable and is not a hazard to a person in the excavation or trench.

(6) An employer shall ensure that a utility pole, building or other structure is provided adequate support or removed if the utility pole, building or other structure may become unstable because of excavation or trenching activity.

[N.S. Reg. 52/2000, s. 86]

167. No person shall enter an excavation or trench 1.2 m or more in depth unless an employer ensures that a ladder is installed that extends at least 1 m above the excavation or trench or some other adequate means of access and exit is provided

(a) that is no more than 15 m from where the person is working; or

(b) where a trench cage is used, within the trench cage.

168. An employer shall ensure that excavated material is

(a) kept at least 1 m away from the edge of an excavation or trench, unless an engineer certifies a shorter distance as adequate; and

(b) located a sufficient distance from the edge of the excavation or trench to ensure the excavated material does not re-enter the excavation or trench.

[N.S. Reg. 52/2000, s. 87]

169. (1) An employer shall ensure that an excavation or trench in which a person works is kept reasonably free of water.

(2) Where a person may be exposed to a hazardous substance or to an oxygen rich atmosphere in an excavation or trench, an employer shall ensure that, before the person enters the excavation or trench,

(a) testing is performed to

(i) determine the concentration of any hazardous gas, vapour or dust, flammables, the concentration of oxygen and oxygen deficiency in the atmosphere in the immediate area of the excavation or trench where the work is to be performed,

(ii) ensure that the concentration of a chemical substance or a mixture of chemical substances in the excavation or trench does not exceed its occupational exposure limit under Part 2: Occupational Health of the Workplace Health and Safety Regulations made under the Act or 50% of its lower explosive limit, and

(iii) ensure that the level of oxygen in the atmosphere in the excavation or trench is not less than 19.5% and not more than 22.5%, unless the employer can demonstrate that an unsafe oxygen level is not possible in the circumstances; and

(b) adequate precautions are taken to reduce the risk of injury to a person.

(3) No person shall store hazardous substances in an excavation or trench.

(4) An employer shall provide, at or near the sides of all temporary excavations greater than 1.2 m in depth, fences, guards or barricades that prevent a person from falling into an excavation, and shall keep those fences, guards or barricades in place at all times, except where they interfere with the excavation or other work being done.

[N.S. Reg. 52/2000, s. 88; 53/2013, s. 73]

170. (1) Where a trench cage is used in an excavation or trench, an engineer shall certify the design of the cage.

(2) An engineer shall include in the certified design required in subsection. (1) information on

(a) the depth at which the trench cage may be used; and

(b) the manner in which the trench cage is to be installed, erected, used, maintained and dismantled.

(3) Where a trench cage is altered, repaired or otherwise modified in a manner that may affect the structural integrity of the cage, an employer shall ensure that it meets the requirements of these regulations and is certified by an engineer in accordance with subsections. (1) and (2) prior to use after the alteration, repair or modification.

(4) Where the top of a trench cage is below ground level, an employer shall ensure that the soil above the cage is sloped in accordance with clause 166(1)(b).

171. (1) An employer shall ensure that a nameplate is permanently attached to a trench cage, in a location visible for inspection when the cage is in use, identifying the engineer that certified the design of the trench cage and the depth at which the cage may be used.

(2) An employer shall designate a competent person to inspect a trench cage before each day it is used to ensure that it does not have any defects or damage that may affect the structural integrity of the cage.

(3) Where an inspection required in subsection (2) identifies a defect or damage that affects the structural integrity of the trench cage, an employer shall remove the cage from service until it is repaired and re-certified in accordance with subsection 170(3).

172. An employer shall ensure that, where a trench cage is used, the cage

(a) rests as close as possible to the bottom of the excavation or trench; and

(b) does not rest above the bottom of the excavation or trench more than the designed maximum height, or 900 mm, whichever is the lesser,

unless an engineer certifying the design of the cage also certifies its use in the specific circumstances.

173. (1) An employer shall ensure that shoring or bracing for an excavation or trench

(a) complies with a design certified by an engineer; or

(b) is commercially manufactured.

(2) An employer shall ensure that any shoring or bracing for an excavation or trench is installed, erected, maintained and dismantled in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications or an engineer's specifications.