Manitoba Working Alone and Safety Course: Lessons 2026

Lesson 1: Manitoba's safety law and who enforces it

Workplace safety in Manitoba is set by The Workplace Safety and Health Act (C.C.S.M. c. W210) and the Workplace Safety and Health Regulation (M.R. 217/2006). The Workplace Safety and Health Branch enforces them. SAFE Work Manitoba, part of the Workers Compensation Board of Manitoba (WCB), publishes guides and training.

• Employers must protect workers' safety, health and welfare as far as reasonably practicable, give information, training and competent supervision, and train workers before they start a new task (Act, s. 4).
• Workers must take reasonable care for themselves and others, use the protective equipment required, and cooperate with the committee or representative (Act, s. 5).

Lesson 2: Working alone under Part 9

Manitoba has its own working alone rules in Part 9 of the regulation. Working alone means being the only worker for your employer at the workplace, without direct supervision. Working in isolation means working where help is not readily available in case of injury, illness or emergency. The code of practice says you can be working alone even when other companies' staff or the public are around.

What the employer must do

1. Identify the risks of the work, in consultation with the committee, the representative or, if there is neither, the workers (s. 9.2).
2. Eliminate or reduce those risks as far as reasonably practicable.
3. Write safe work procedures, train workers in them and make sure they are followed (s. 9.3).
4. Post the procedures in a conspicuous place at the workplace.
5. Review them at least every three years, or sooner if conditions change.

What the procedures must include

• An effective communication system: a radio, phone, cell phone or other means that works for the risks involved.
• One or more of: a system of regular contact by the employer, limits or bans on certain activities, or training requirements.
• Where it applies, emergency supplies for extreme cold or other bad weather.

Lesson 3: Check-ins and staying safe

Manitoba's regulation does not set a fixed check-in interval. Manitoba's Code of Practice for Workers Working Alone or in Isolation says the time between checks depends on the risks of the job. It gives the example of a security worker who calls dispatch every hour before starting rounds.

The code treats security work outside hazardous locations as lower risk, but says even lower-risk lone work needs safe procedures. It lists two-way radios, pagers, emergency alarm devices and visual monitoring as communication options, and says the equipment must suit the worker, for example visual alarms for a worker who is deaf.

Good check-in habits

• Check in when you arrive, at each agreed time, and when you leave.
• Call before a check-in is due if you know you will be late.
• Know what happens when you miss a check-in: who calls you, and when help is sent.
• Keep emergency numbers posted and saved in your phone.
• Carry a personal first aid kit if a standard kit is not close by.

Lesson 4: Violence and harassment

Part 11 of the regulation covers violence: attempted or actual physical force against a person, or threats that give a person reason to believe force will be used. Security is one of the listed workplaces that must have a violence prevention policy, along with health care, retail sales between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., taxis and transit, and others. Other employers need one if their risk assessment finds a risk.

• The policy names the areas and jobs where violence has happened or is likely, and the steps taken to control it.
• It sets out how workers get immediate help during a violent incident, and how they report incidents.
• The employer must investigate incidents and act on what it finds.
• Each year, the employer gives a report of violent incidents to the committee, or to the representative or workers if there is no committee.

Part 10 covers harassment. Employers must have a written harassment prevention policy. It must say every worker is entitled to work free of harassment, explain how to complain and how complaints are investigated, keep names private except as needed, and tell workers they may also complain to the Manitoba Human Rights Commission.

Lesson 5: Your rights and reporting

SAFE Work Manitoba lists four worker rights: the right to know, to participate, to refuse dangerous work, and to protection from reprisal.

Refusing dangerous work

1. Tell your employer, supervisor or person in charge right away, and give your reasons.
2. If it is not fixed, it is inspected with you and the worker co-chair of the committee (or the representative, or another worker you choose).
3. If it is still not resolved, anyone at the inspection may call the Workplace Safety and Health Branch, which can order changes or stop the work.

During a refusal you keep the same wages and benefits, and you may be given other work for a while. The employer may give the refused job to another worker only after giving that worker written reasons for the refusal and information on the right to refuse, and after an inspection and remedial action.

Reporting injuries and serious incidents

After a serious incident, the scene must be left as it is for at least 24 hours after the report, except to free a trapped person or prevent more danger.