Small business health and safety

IWH research that specifically looks at injury prevention, return to work and other work-health issues in small businesses is collected together here. However, not included is IWH research that cuts across all sizes of business, including small business. For that reason, visitors are encouraged to explore beyond this page to find equally important information on the prevention of work injury and disability in small businesses.

Featured

A bearded male worker in an apron handles decorative blue-teal glass discs displayed on a shelf
At Work article

Consultants play key role in OHS implementation at small firms

An IWH study of small businesses that took part in Ontario's Health and Safety Excellence Program highlights the key factors that contribute their success in the program.
Published: November 8, 2024
IWH Speaker Series

Understanding OHS motivations and needs in small businesses

Published: March 19, 2024
A bearded male worker in an apron handles decorative blue-teal glass discs displayed on a shelf
At Work article

Consultants play key role in OHS implementation at small firms

Time and resource constraints may make it hard for small businesses to access health and safety support programs. But, as an IWH study finds, small businesses gain from even limited participation in such programs. The study, based on interviews with small businesses that took part in Ontario's Health and Safety Excellence Program, also highlights factors that contribute to their success in the program.
Published: November 2024
Project report
Project report

Participation in the Health and Safety Excellence Small Business Program: Understanding small business motivations and needs

The Workplace Safety & Insurance Board (WSIB) of Ontario launched the Health and Safety Excellence Program (HSEp) in 2019 to help Ontario employers improve their management of workplace health and safety. In 2021, to increase the participation of small businesses, the WSIB and the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development adjusted several program features and launched the HSEp Small Business Program. This report summarizes the results from a study aimed at understanding the needs, motivations, and experiences of the selected cohort of small businesses in the program and identifying effective approaches to improve the delivery of occupational health and safety (OHS) services to small businesses.
Published: September 2024
Project
Project

Understanding how new businesses start managing OHS: laying the groundwork for future interventions

About 100,000 new businesses with one or more employees are created each year in Canada. Almost all start out as small businesses, which have been shown to carry high risks of injuries and fatalities. This study sets out to understand how occupational health and safety management is initiated by new businesses. Its aim is to fill in a research gap and help the prevention system in Ontario reach and support new businesses early in their lifecycle.
Status: Ongoing
IWH Speaker Series
IWH Speaker Series

Understanding OHS motivations and needs in small businesses

Small businesses bear a disproportionate share of serious work-related injuries and fatalities. They also experience challenges in implementing occupational health and safety (OHS) practices due to limited OHS resources and expertise. In this presentation, Dr. Basak Yanar and Dr. Cameron Mustard share findings from a study that interviewed small businesses enrolled in the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB)'s Health and Safety Excellence program. The presenters discuss small businesses’ motivations for participating in the program, their OHS needs and challenges, and their perceptions of the support they received as part of the program.
Published: March 2024
Project
Project

Programs of early OHS intervention with small businesses

What existing OHS interventions for small businesses can be feasibly implemented in small business start-ups? This project aims to find out.
Status: Ongoing
Daily Commercial News logo
IWH in the media

OHS for small businesses the next challenge for Ontario: IWH president

Too many small workplaces do not have adequate occupational health and safety (OHS) tools available to keep their workers safe. Don Wall interviews Dr. Cameron Mustard, Institute for Work & Health president, who says it’s time for Ontario to redouble its efforts to ensure the province’s small employers conduct business in healthy and safe environments.
Published: Daily Commercial News, July 2021
female factory worker sitting on floor with tools, looking worried about what to do
At Work article

Weaker OHS procedures, policies explain small employers’ higher injury risks: study

Workers at small firms are more exposed to hazards and report more work-related injuries and illnesses. But an IWH study finds injury risks in large and small firms even out when weaker OHS policies at small firms are accounted for.
Published: May 2021
Project
Project

Understanding the injury experience of Ontario small businesses through workers’ compensation claims data

By analyzing Ontario's workers’ compensation data, an IWH team is producing injury risk profiles by sector and workplace size, thus enhancing our understanding of risk in small businesses.
Status: Ongoing
Project
Project

Understanding OHS motivations and needs in small business

By looking at small businesses engaged with WSIB's Health and Safety Excellence Program, this IWH project is looking for effective approaches to delivering OHS services to small businesses and help them improve their safety cultures and outcomes.
Status: Ongoing
Young couple working at their small woodworking business
Impact case study

IWH model on breakthrough change used as foundation for WSPS small business strategy

An Ontario health and safety association, Workplace Safety and Prevention Services, turned to the Institute's model of breakthrough change to inform its approach to small business, especially the concept of finding the "knowledge transformation leader" within a small business to advocate for occupational health and safety change.
Published: December 2017