CLR Connector GENDER-SPECIFIC PPE, COLLECTIVE AGREEMENT LANGUAGE AND UPCOMING REGULATION

In addition to the heavily publicized announcement around flush toilets on construction sites from Premier Eby on Monday, he also made an announcement regarding strengthening regulations around ensuring PPE for employees properly fits all body sizes, types and genders.  We don’t know exactly what form that regulation will take or how soon it will come; however, this is a good time to remind everyone that we already have a requirement on this subject in our collective agreements.  In the settlement reached in May, we agreed to add the following language to all the collective agreements:

All safety equipment and clothing that is provided by the Employer under this Collective Agreement will be correct fitting for every individual body type, size and gender when available.

This language places a specific onus on contractors to supply gender-specific PPE regardless of if or when the regulations change. The language does include the wording “when available” but we should note that language only lifts the requirement to provide gender- specific PPE when there are no suppliers available to provide it – not when your provider of choice does not provide it. Essentially, all signatory contractors have a requirement to ensure that the PPE provided is a proper fit for each employee and will be subject to grievance for failing to do so.

For your reference, we have collected a list of suppliers who we know provide PPE which is specifically designed to fit female employees. A copy of that list can be found here and will be posted to our website. We will be reviewing this list of suppliers regularly and adding others as we become aware of them. If you know of a supplier not on this list, please let us know so we can add them to future updates. If you have any questions about this collective agreement language or the upcoming regulatory process, please do not hesitate to contact CLR staff.