Minutes of the National Health and Safety Policy Committee (NHSPC) Meeting

This meeting was chaired by Sonia Côté, Employer Co-Chair.

1. OPENING REMARKS

The Employer Co-Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting. She began by announcing the recent retirement of Claude Corbin as the Deputy Assistant, Finance and Administration Branch (FAB) and thanked him for his many years of service with the committee. She welcomed Gabriel Hurtubise as his replacement. She also welcomed Sara Boulé-Perroni, the new Audit, Financial and Scientific Group, OHS Technical Advisor, who was unable to join the meeting. Attendees introduced themselves for the benefit of the new attendees.

The Employer Co-Chair made note that the Public Service Employee Survey (PSES) 2024 results have been published and that senior management has noted the significant decrease in employee satisfaction. They will analyze the results over the summer and align actions with the existing strategy to address concerns.

The Employee Co-Chair brought his opening remarks thanking everyone for their attendance. He also noted the disappointing PSES results, stating that it is clear that

morale is at an all-time low. He continued that the Committee had not received a formal response on why call centre employees were only allowed fifteen minutes to complete the survey as opposed to all other CRA employees who were given thirty minutes to complete it. The Employer Representatives agreed to follow up on this.

2. REVIEW OF DOCUMENTS

2.1 NHSPC Meeting Minutes – February 20, 2025

The minutes have been signed and sent for publishing.

2.2 Action Item Report

The action item report from the February 20, 2025, NHPSC meeting was reviewed and updated as follows.

Closed items:
Job Hazard Analysis for Field Employees (JHA for FE) Working Group
The sub-committee for the review of Criminal Investigations Directorate “Search” procedures is determining the feasibility of additional levels of personal protective equipment (PPE) for search team members. Moving forward, this will be updated in the OHS Written Updates.

Security and Safety Issues Outside CRA Workplaces
This is closed as an action item however, when necessary, updates will be provided by the Human Resources Branch (HRB) and the Security Branch (SB) on measures being taken to ensure the safety of CRA employees in the workplace.

Ongoing items:
Environmental Sensitivities
The Employee Co-chair emphasized the need for a more comprehensive approach to environmental sensitivity issues, citing the Canadian Human Rights Commission’s guidelines. The Employer Representative stated that the policy examples shared from both UTE and the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) were policy statements, and not explicit policies. The Employer Representatives explained the current approach, which includes communication, awareness, and duty to accommodate where necessary. The challenges of this issue were also highlighted such as the subjectivity of scents and competing rights of employees in the building. The Employer Representatives agreed to take it back and come back to the Committee in September.

2.3 Forward Agenda

The forward agenda was reviewed and several questions were raised regarding the timing of the Annual OHS Dashboard and the national OHS reports to ESDC-Labour Program. Moving forward, this will be included in the second NHSPC meeting of the year. Clarification was provided that the forward agenda will contain topics that are not included at every meeting.

2.4 OHS Communication Plan

The OHS Communication Plan was reviewed with several questions surrounding the timing and status of planned communications.

3. VERBAL UPDATES

3.1    Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention (WHVP)
The updated Workplace Harassment and Violence Prevention and Resolution Procedures were approved and published on InfoZone. This was communicated to all employees as an Agency News Item and sent to UTE and AFS separately.

A question was raised regarding the absence of the quarterly workplace harassment and violence case numbers and trend information. The Committee was reminded that it had been discussed and decided at the February 2025 NHSPC meeting that the trend analysis would be provided semi-annually instead of quarterly in the OHS Written Update. The “Number of Occurrences” data will still be included quarterly in the OHS Dashboard.

3.2 Well-Being and Psychological Health and Safety

A fulsome update on the progress of the Well-being and Psychological Health and Safety (PHS) Approach was provided. May 5-10 was Mental Health Week and Safety and Health Week. A number of communications were shared including daily activities and quizzes.

The Ontario Pilot has ended and provided valuable feedback to create actionable next steps for implementing tools to identify psychological hazards in the workplace. Several health and safety committees expressed interest to pilot the tools which includes new training that is scenario based and uses role playing to familiarize members with the tools. In support of this, additional resources on the 13 workplace factors that affect well- being and psychological health and safety were published.

3.3 Health and Safety Committees and Representatives

The updated Health and Safety Committee and Representatives Standard Operating Procedure has been approved effective March 31, 2025. The Employer Representative thanked everyone for their participation in the review and update.

3.4 Automated External Defibrillators Update

The committee was provided an update on the new Automated External Defibrillator (AED) and first aid kit contracts. At the time of reporting, 56 sites have acquired the new units. The InfoZone webpage was updated to include the digital operation manual. The National OHS Program is working with the contractor to implement the online inventory management site where first aid coordinators will track inspections and maintenance of the new AED units. Communications have been sent to first aid coordinators with instructions on ordering the new AEDs and disposing of the existing units.

3.5 Hazard Prevention Program

The Committee was provided with an update on the cyclical review of the Hazard Prevention Program (HPP) report. This iteration of the HPP is ensuring incorporation of how to address psychological hazards. The report was shared on June 20, 2025, with the Employee Representatives for their review and feedback.

3.6 ATIP Requests - Discussion

The Employee Co-Chair asked for an update on a recent ATIP request made to the Agency to release a list of CRA employee names, Branch, and workplace. He noted that he is concerned for employee safety given the increasing numbers of threats against them simply because they work for the CRA. The ensuing discussion focused on ensuring that these types of requests were vetted properly, including a review of the security implications to employees and the Agency as a whole.
This is being further investigated at the national level and further updates will be provided in September.

4. HRB-OHS WRITTEN UPDATES

Members received the following written updates in advance of the meeting.

4.1 National OHS Dashboard

In conjunction to the written update, the committee was provided with the Q4 2024-2025 National OHS dashboard. The following dashboard elements were discussed:

Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) Assurance of Voluntary Compliance (AVCs) and Directions

The Employee Co-Chair asked to have a copy of the Shawinigan AVC report and follow- up reports.

HSC/HSR effectiveness

The Employee Co-Chair again brought up the lack of compliance of HSC/HSRs completing monthly workplace inspections. He requested that the list of non-compliant workplaces be provided to the NHSPC for review.

Security Branch to determine who is responsible for ensuring inspections are conducted every month, and determine measures to take to ensure compliance. They will report back to the Committee.

Hazards and safety complaints

The OHS Dashboard reported 158 reported hazard incidents in Q4 2024-2025. Of note, there were 20 reports related to scents, and 6 related to building maintenance smells that were all addressed locally.

A frequent complaint that comes up is the smell when roofs are repaired or replaced as some smell inevitably seeps into the building ventilation system. The Employer Representative from FAB questioned if these were also reported to the National Service Call Centre (NSCC) as this allows tracking of issues. He also suggested that Local Administration can work with the local Property Management Company to take preventative measures with ventilation issues, such as changing the time of day the maintenance work is conducted, or closing the intake systems for short periods to stop the intake of fumes.

4.2 Multiple Environment Job Hazard Analysis (MEJHA) Working Group

The National OHS Program continues to work with the Agency Logistics and Administrative Services Division (ALASD), Mail and General Services Section, and the Shawinigan National Verification and Collections Centre (NVCC) to resolve an Assurance of Voluntary Compliance (AVC) from the Labour Program. The external ergonomic industrial assessment report of the workflow is now complete. The ALASD members of the MEJHA Working Group have been advised and the information from the report will be used to resolve the AVC. A copy of the AVC will also be shared with the Employee Representatives.

4.3 Job Hazard Analysis (JHA) for Field Employees Working Group

The task hazard analysis for the execution of warrants in a criminal investigation continues. The Employee Representatives shared that the Working Group is to complete this work no later than the end of the calendar year, and that they are working over the summer to understand the reality from representative offices.

4.4 Health and Safety Committee (HSC)/Health and Safety Representative Program (HSR)

The HSC “Train the Trainer” session was delivered virtually from April 29 to May 1, 2025. Currently, there are 12 management trainers and 20 employee trainers. The need for a subsequent “Train the Trainer” session will be determined as needed.
The revised Health and Safety Committees and Representatives Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) was approved and published on InfoZone on May 31, 2025. The tools will be subsequently updated. Messaging will be sent to the HSC/HSRs members to advise them of the changes.

4.5 OHS Training Courses Status

TD1599-001 Health and Safety For Employees
The translation and accessibility review anticipated to be completed in March, is expected to be completed in June. Final approval will be sought in July with a posting in August.

TD1599-003 Health and Safety for Supervisors
The training has been updated and will be published during the summer of 2025. The updated training includes additional clarification on the role of the most senior management representative on-site and the supervisor’s role in emergency situations.

4.6 Workplace Health and Safety Operations (WHSO)

The Committee was provided with an update on the operations and outreach of the Occupational Health and Safety Prevention and Compliance Center (OHS PCC) and the Harassment and Violence Prevention Centre (HVPC).

The WHSO reported that all workplaces submitted their annual Workplace Committee Reports (LAB1058) to ESDC-Labour Program on time. In addition, 72 active workplace HSCs submitted the mandatory Annual Report to Management and the Annual Inspection Plans to their most senior management representative by the February 1, 2025, deadline.

WHSO is facing challenges to coordinate the Health and Safety Committee Training - Part 2. Of the 684 HSC committee members, 376, or 55% have received this training. The Employer Co-chair noted that this training should happen within six months of joining the committee. He also wants to look deeper into what the challenges are for the trainers to make themselves available. He is going to follow-up on this from the employee representative side, and asked that the Employer Co-Chair follow-up from the management side.

The OHS Officers continue to meet with HSC/HSRs, First Aiders and First Aid Coordinators, and Ergonomic Coaches to exchange information and share best practices.

The OHS Officers completed the first year of onsite monitoring visits. The WHSO continues to provide awareness sessions on different components of the OHS Program, as well as provide ongoing advice and guidance to their clients. In Q4 2024-2025, 32 awareness sessions were held.

5. FINANCE AND ADMINISTRATION BRANCH (FAB) WRITTEN UPDATES

5.1 Airborne Asbestos Fibre Testing

There are 43 work sites occupied by the Agency that are known to contain asbestos- containing materials (ACM). Since the last report, the Western Region has released one site, 1039 Princess Ave, Brandon, Manitoba, was released on December 31, 2024.

CRA completed the airborne asbestos fibre testing (AAFT) for the fifteen identified sites known to contain ACMs in fiscal year (FY) 2024 - 2025 (5 sites in the National Capital Region and 10 sites in the Ontario Region). Final testing results were received for all sites and they were all well below the applicable regulatory thresholds. The tested levels pose no risks to employee health and safety, and results have been posted on InfoZone.

In addition, in fiscal year 2024–2025, the Western Region completed the AAFT at its 15 identified sites, final results were received for all sites and they were all well below the applicable regulatory thresholds. Results of this testing cycle will be posted on InfoZone in Q1 of FY 2025-2026. With the Western Region completing its testing in late 2024- 2025, there will be no AAFT testing in FY 2025-2026.

The testing cycle will continue with the Quebec and Atlantic regions in FY 2026-2027, followed by the NCR and Ontario Region in FY 2027-2028, and Western Region in FY 2028-2029.

The Committee had no comments on this report.

Consultation is underway to discuss changing the current three year testing cycle to a five-year cycle with an allowance for earlier testing if the need should arise, for example, if unforeseen renovation work was required at a workplace with known asbestos present. The FAB proposal was shared with the employee representatives, with a meeting scheduled for July. Updates will be shared with the Committee.

5.2 Radon Testing

The written update on radon testing covers the only CRA occupied space that was found to exceed Health Canada Guideline limit of 200 Bq/m³ - 126 Prince William Street, Saint John, N.B.

In March 2025, PSPC informed CRA of the most recent short-term test results. These results confirmed that the recent adjustments to the ventilation system in the basement were effective in reducing radon levels to between 141 Bq/m³ and 158 Bq/m³ in CRA occupied space, which is below the Health Canada radon exposure limit.

Local CRA Finance and Administration will continue to track entry and time spent in the warehouse until remediation is complete, even though the levels are below radon exposure limits. The most recent testing still indicated a radon exceedance present in the building’s boiler room, however, CRA employees do not have access to this location.
BGIS has a remediation plan scheduled for completion by next year, aligning with Health Canada’s two-year guideline.

Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems will continue to run 24/7 to offset radon levels until remediation is complete. CRA will ensure that a re-test is done every five years thereafter in accordance with the Health Canada’s guideline. CRA has posted the information on the associated mitigation plans for the location identified above on InfoZone.

The Committee had no comments or questions on this update.

5.3  Sharing of Reports from Public Service and Procurement Canada (PSPC) FAB provided a written update to update the Committee on the measures underway to ensure that HSC/HSRs will be able to access test results conducted on the workplace in which they work.

PSPC’s service provider, BGIS, has introduced the Communication with the Representatives of the Employer (CoRE) portal for Crown-owned sites. The CoRE portal has been rolled out as a pilot project in the Quebec and Atlantic Regions, and its success will guide further expansion. By the end of the fiscal year, PSPC will grant access to the CoRe portal – where available - to designated Real Property regional representatives from FAB, enabling them to obtain technical reports. These reports can then be shared with the applicable committees. Regions that do not yet have access to CoRE will be able to request technical reports directly. An update will be provided in September.

The Employee Co-Chair stated that this appeared to be a very positive step forward to resolve this ongoing issue. He asked for confirmation that this would be made available for Crown-owned and leased workplaces. It was confirmed that this is the intention of the project. The Employee Representative asked that a list of CRA workplaces be provided showing if they are Crown-owned or leased.

6. SECURITY BRANCH (SB) WRITTEN UPDATE

6.1 Report on Threats and Assaults Against CRA Employees Q4 2024-2025 

The Committee reviewed the written report as presented by the Security Branch. No questions or comments were made.

Additional action items to be addressed in September are:

Security Incident Reporting - unreported security incident.

The field employees working group will review how field employees are trained to report security incidents (SIR). This was brought to light after CRA employees failed to submit a SIR after encountering improperly stored firearms and ammunition while in the field.

Security Incident Reporting – package of concern handling procedures

Security Branch is to report back to the Committee how mailroom employees are trained in the handling of packages of concern following a number of SIRs where correct procedures were not followed.

6.2 Fire and Emergency Exercises Annual Update

The annual report on mandatory emergency evacuation exercises was reviewed. The Employee Co-Chair stated that he was very disappointed with the number of workplaces who were out of compliance to conduct the minimum number of emergency response exercises and the rationale given as to why this occurred. The Employee Co-Chair stated that the sites not in compliance are mostly Headquarters workplaces, and it seems that it is not a priority. The Employer Co-Chair stated that she did not believe that health and safety were taken less seriously. The Employer Representatives would look further into this to determine how best to address these areas of non-compliance.

6.3 Security and Safety Issues Outside CRA Worksites-Victoria HTRA

The Security Branch shared the Hazard Threat Risk Assessment (HTRA) with the members of the NHSPC. This document was specifically developed for the NHSPC use, and is not intended to be used outside the committee.

A fulsome discussion was held on the ongoing security issues at the Victoria, BC, workplace. The Employer Representatives highlighted the implementation of 24/7 security guards, additional lighting, and landscape work to discourage loitering. The encampments have been moved, and employees are encouraged to report any concerns.

The Employee Representative outlined concerns brought to him that not all information was being shared with employees regarding health and safety issues for that building, and that some still had concerns about the return to office requirements. It was discussed that the Western Region had developed and released communication products and outlined the mitigation measures along with timelines for addressing the issues surrounding the building. A copy of the communication plan and mitigation timelines developed for this site by the Western Region will be shared with the Committee.

The Employee Representatives asked for additional information on why the risk assessment could not be shared outside of the NHSPC. The Employer Representative stated that security posture is different than the safety of employees, and that this type of information could not be shared regarding the security of buildings, as that would create a risk if it were known.

The Employee Representative asked to have further clarification on the difference between a safety issue and a security issue. They also asked to have a redated version of the report that could be shared outside the NHSPC.

7. CLOSING REMARKS

Mr. Gaetz thanked everyone for attending and mentioned that there is still a lot of work to be done in this area and encouraged everyone to take it seriously.

Ms. Côté thanked everyone for their work and their participation in the meeting. The next NHSPC meeting is scheduled for September 4, 2025.