British Columbia Working Alone and Safety Course: Lessons 2026

Lesson 1: BC's safety law and your rights

In British Columbia, workplace health and safety is set by Part 2 of the Workers Compensation Act and the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Regulation. WorkSafeBC runs the system: its prevention officers inspect workplaces and enforce the rules, and it handles injury claims.

Section 21 of the Act says the employer must ensure the health and safety of all its workers. Section 22 says each worker must take reasonable care to protect their own health and safety and that of others.

Your three rights

• The right to know about hazards in the workplace
• The right to participate in health and safety activities
• The right to refuse unsafe work

By law, an employer must not penalize you for raising a safety issue. Under sections 47 to 49 of the Act, this is called prohibited action. A worker can complain to WorkSafeBC within one year of the action.

New and young workers

Section 3.23 of the Regulation says a young worker (under 25) or a new worker must get a workplace-specific safety orientation before starting work. It must cover topics such as the right to refuse, workplace hazards including violence and working alone, first aid, emergency procedures and who the supervisor is.

Lesson 2: BC's working alone rules

Sections 4.20.1 to 4.23 of the Regulation cover working alone or in isolation. It means work where help would not be readily available to you in an emergency, or if you were injured or ill. A night guard in a large empty building, or a mobile patrol officer, is often working alone.

What the employer must do

Checklist for a lone guard

• I know my check-in interval and who my designated contact is.
• My phone or radio is charged and works everywhere on my route.
• I know what happens if I miss a check-in.
• I will make my end-of-shift check before I leave.
• I will report any part of the procedure that is not working.

Lesson 3: Violence, bullying and harassment

Security work can mean contact with angry or violent people. Sections 4.27 to 4.31 of the Regulation deal with violence in the workplace.

In these rules, violence means a person other than a worker trying to use, or using, physical force that could injure a worker. It also includes threatening statements or behaviour that give a worker reasonable cause to believe they are at risk of injury.

• Risk assessment (4.28): The employer assesses the risk of violence, using past experience at the workplace, experience in similar workplaces, and the location and circumstances of the work.
• Procedures (4.29): If there is a risk, the employer must eliminate it or, if that is not possible, minimize it with procedures, policies and changes to the work environment.
• Instruction (4.30): Workers must be told about the risk, including about known violent people they are likely to meet, and how to recognize violence, respond, get help and report incidents.
• Medical advice (4.31): A worker who reports an injury or symptoms from violence must be advised to see a physician of their choice.

Bullying and harassment

WorkSafeBC says employers must have procedures for responding to reports of bullying and harassment, including how investigations are done and followed up. Workers should report bullying or harassment they experience or see to their employer and cooperate with investigations. If the employer does not take reasonable steps, a worker can call WorkSafeBC's Prevention Information Line. Reasonable management action by an employer or supervisor is not bullying or harassment.

Lesson 4: Refusing unsafe work in BC

Section 3.12 of the Regulation says you must not carry out work or use equipment if you have reasonable cause to believe it would create an undue hazard to anyone. The steps are:

1. Report it immediately to your supervisor or employer.
2. The supervisor or employer investigates right away and either fixes the problem or tells you why they think your report is not valid.
3. If you still refuse, they investigate again with you present and with a worker member of the joint committee, a worker chosen by your union, or, if there is neither, another worker you choose.
4. If it is still not resolved, you and the employer must immediately notify a WorkSafeBC officer, who investigates and makes any orders needed.

While the refusal is open, the employer may not give the work to another worker unless that worker is told in writing about your refusal, the unsafe condition, why the employer thinks it is safe, and their own right to refuse (section 3.12.1).

Section 3.13 says you must not face prohibited action for following this process. Being moved to other work with no loss of pay while the refusal is sorted out is allowed.

Lesson 5: Reporting injuries and safety committees

WorkSafeBC Prevention Information Line

Call 604.276.3100 in the Lower Mainland or 1.888.621.7233 (1.888.621.SAFE) toll-free. The line takes urgent reports 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including serious incidents and unsafe work conditions, and you can report anonymously.

Joint committees and representatives

• A joint health and safety committee is required where 20 or more workers are regularly employed (Act, s. 31).
• A worker health and safety representative is required where there are more than 9 but fewer than 20 workers (s. 45).
• Committee members get 8 hours of training, representatives get 4 hours, and both are entitled to 8 hours of safety education leave each year.