HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of British Columbia, enacts as follows:

1 Section 69 (1) and (2) of the Workers Compensation Act, R.S.B.C. 1996, c. 492, is repealed and the following substituted:

(1) The Board must, on or before April 30 in each year, make to the minister a report of its transactions during the last preceding calendar year, and the report must contain the particulars the minister specifies.

(2) The minister must promptly, with respect to the report referred to in subsection (1),

(a) lay the report before the Legislative Assembly, if the Legislative Assembly is in session, or

(b) file the report with the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, if the Legislative Assembly is not in session.

2 Section 82.1 is amended

(a) in subsection (1) by striking out "March 31" and substituting "April 30", and

(b) by repealing subsection (2) and substituting the following:

(2) The minister must promptly, with respect to the service plan referred to in subsection (1),

(a) lay the service plan before the Legislative Assembly, if the Legislative Assembly is in session, or

(b) file the service plan with the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, if the Legislative Assembly is not in session.

3 Section 86 (3) is amended by striking out ", subject to the approval of the Lieutenant Governor in Council," and by striking out ", subject to the like approval," in both places.

4 Section 130 (g) is amended by striking out "to the workplace or the work" and substituting "to the workplace, including significant proposed changes to equipment and machinery, or the work".

5 Section 132 is amended by renumbering the section as section 132 (1) and by adding the following subsection:

(2) If the Board considers that a joint committee is unable to reach agreement on a matter relating to the health or safety of workers at the workplace, the Board, on its own initiative, may investigate the matter and attempt to resolve the matter.

6 Section 172 (1) is amended by striking out "or" at the end of paragraph (c) and by adding the following paragraph:

(c.1) involved a fire or explosion that had a potential for causing serious injury to a worker, or .

7 Section 174 is amended by adding the following subsection:

(1.1) For the purposes of subsection (1), the participation of the employer or a representative of the employer and a worker representative includes, but is not limited to, the following activities:

(a) viewing the scene of the incident with the persons carrying out the investigation;

(b) providing advice to the persons carrying out the investigation respecting the methods used to carry out the investigation, the scope of the investigation, or any other aspect of the investigation;

(c) other activities, as prescribed by the Board.

8 Section 176 is amended

(a) in subsection (2) by striking out "and" at the end of paragraph (a), by adding ", and" at the end of paragraph (b) and by adding the following paragraph:

(c) within 30 days of the occurrence of the incident, either,

(i) provided to the joint committee or worker health and safety representative, as applicable, or

(ii) if there is no joint committee or worker health and safety representative, posted at the workplace. , and

(b) in subsection (3) by striking out "(2) (b)." and substituting "(2) (b) or (c)."

Commencement

9  The provisions of this Act referred to in column 1 of the following table come into force as set out in column 2 of the table:

 
Explanatory Notes

SECTION 1: [Workers Compensation Act, section 69]

• changes the date when the annual report is due;
• provides that the report must contain particulars specified by the minister rather than prescribed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council;
• sets out what to do with the annual report if the Legislative Assembly is not in session.

SECTION 2: [Workers Compensation Act, section 82.1]

• changes the date when the service plan is due;
• sets out what to do with the service plan if the Legislative Assembly is not in session.

SECTION 3: [Workers Compensation Act, section 86] removes the requirement for approval of the Lieutenant Governor in Council respecting the superannuation fund.

SECTION 4: [Workers Compensation Act, section 130] sets out specific items in respect of which a joint committee must advise the employer.

SECTION 5: [Workers Compensation Act, section 132] authorizes the Board to investigate and resolve matters as set out.

SECTION 6: [Workers Compensation Act, section 172] adds another occurrence in respect of which an employer must notify the Board.

SECTION 7: [Workers Compensation Act, section 174] clarifies that participation includes the specific activities set out.

SECTION 8: [Workers Compensation Act, section 176]

• sets out an additional requirement respecting full investigation reports, and a time period within which to fulfill the additional requirement;
• allows the Board to extend the time period respecting that additional requirement.