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Section I Overview
President's Message
As President and CEO of the Hazardous Materials Information Review Commission during this reporting period, it is my pleasure to submit to Parliament and to Canadians our Performance Report for 2006–2007. At the same time, I am proud to announce that the Commission's long-sought legislative amendments have been enacted into law. Bill S-2, An Act to Amend the Hazardous Materials Information Review Act, received Royal Assent on March 29, 2007, marking the conclusion of a remarkable journey toward a revitalized, modernized Commission.
We began our renewal process in 1999 with the vision of becoming a more client-focused agency committed to improving service quality and timeliness. Along the way we implemented wide-ranging initiatives that touched every area of our operations, and introduced more openness, more transparency and more accountability into our everyday operations. And now, with the passage of three legislative amendments, we can finally say that we have transformed the Commission into a dynamic, progressive, well-performing agency.
These legislative amendments reduce the time required to review claims for exemption from disclosure of confidential business information, speed up the correction of the information workers need to handle hazardous materials safely, and expedite the appeals process.
The revitalization of the Commission was my top priority when I accepted this position as President and CEO in 1998, and the successful conclusion to this initiative is a fitting end to my tenure. Throughout this renewal process I have been inspired by the commitment of the Commission's staff and all members of the Council of Governors. In consultation with our clients, stakeholders and WHMIS partners, we seized the renewal agenda and laid out our objectives in a strategic plan called Blueprint for Change. We then developed an operational workplan, a road map of sorts, which plotted our journey toward renewal with 29 specific action items. The journey has had its share of challenges, of course, but by working collaboratively, we have accomplished every action item that we set for ourselves.
Many of our business processes have changed since 1998, but our fundamental role has not. Through our material safety data sheet (MSDS) compliance efforts, the Commission is an important advocate for workers, and between 1998 and 2007 it made a measurable improvement to workplace safety by ordering corrections to 13,846 MSDS compliance violations. The Commission is also a strategic partner to industry, helping to safeguard trade secrets that help companies compete in the marketplace. Between 1998 and 2007 the value of those protected trade secrets totalled $2.86 billion. We are continually striving to achieve a balance between the right of workers to know about the hazardous materials they deal with in the workplace and the right of industry to protect confidential business information.
I am proud to have led our renewal initiative, but this monumental achievement was very much a joint effort, involving staff members who were fully invested in the process and Council members who represent many different stakeholders yet came together to do the right thing for the public good. The end result shows what can be accomplished through partnership, through professionalism, and by committing ourselves to tangible and measurable results. We have fundamentally changed how we operate, and have set the Commission on a new course for the future.
This will be the last Performance Report in my tenure as President and CEO of the Hazardous Materials Information Review Commission. It has been an honour to have served in this role for nine years. I would like to thank staff members and Council members for their dedication, their support and their unwavering commitment to our goal. As I leave the Commission, I am confident that they will continue to make a difference to industry, to workers and to the health and safety community.
Weldon Newton
President and Chief Executive Officer
(Retired - June 1, 2007)
Management Representation Statement
I submit for tabling in Parliament, the 2006–2007 Departmental Performance Report for the Hazardous Materials Information Review Commission (HMIRC).
This document has been prepared based on the reporting principles contained in the Guide to the Preparation of Part III of the 2006–2007 Estimates: Reports on Plans and Priorities and Departmental Performance Reports:
- It adheres to the specific reporting requirements outlined in the Treasury Board Secretariat (TBS) guidance;
- It is based on the department's approved Strategic Outcome(s) and Program Activity Architecture that were approved by the Treasury Board;
- It presents consistent, comprehensive, balanced and reliable information;
- It provides a basis of accountability for the results achieved with the resources and authorities entrusted to it; and
- It reports finances based on approved numbers from the Estimates and the Public Accounts of Canada.
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September 18, 2007
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| Sharon Watts President and Chief Executive Officer |
Date |
Summary Information
Mandate
The Hazardous Materials Information Review Act mandates our Commission to:
- register claims for trade secret exemptions and issue registry numbers;
- adjudicate and issue decisions on the validity of claims for exemption using prescribed regulatory criteria;
- make decisions on the compliance of MSDSs and labels to WHMIS requirements; and
- convene independent boards with representatives drawn from labour, suppliers or employers to hear appeals from claimants or affected parties on our decisions and orders.
Mission
The Commission's mission is to:
- ensure a balance between industry's right to protect confidential business information and the right of employers and workers to know about the hazardous materials they deal with in the workplace;
- provide a trade secret mechanism within WHMIS; and
- resolve complaints and disputes impartially, fairly and promptly through statutory or alternate means.
HMIRC has defined its vision as:
- making decisions based on both sound scientific principles and regulations, and taking pride in being a professional quasi-judicial organization seeking creative and progressive approaches to enhancing workplace safety; and
- resolving complaints and disputes, whether under statutory mandate or not, in a manner that is impartial, fair and prompt.
Values and operating principles
The Commission recognizes that continuous improvement is critical in order to remain relevant and to provide effective and efficient performance and service quality. We have identified the values and operating principles that foster continuous improvement in our operations.
FAIRNESS-in our ability to provide services and to perform statutory functions.
TIMELINESS-in our ability to provide services within established and reasonable time frames.
ACCESSIBILITY and TRANSPARENCY-in our ability to provide information and services simply and clearly, and with policies and procedures that are understandable to everyone.
ACCOUNTABILITY-in our ability to propose legislative approaches only when they meet rigorous cost-benefit analysis and to be accountable for programs and the impact of decisions, while providing services in a manner that is cost-effective for everyone involved.
QUALITY and CONSISTENCY-in our ability to render accurate, relevant, dependable, understandable, predictable and error-free decisions, while ensuring consistent, firm enforcement of the regulations.
COMPETENCY and RESPECT-in our ability to provide services based on a high level of skill, knowledge, scientific and technical competence, and to demonstrate respect and professionalism to everyone who comes into contact with the Commission.
SECURITY and CONFIDENTIALITY-in our ability to store and handle the trade secrets of our claimants.
Context
Labour, industry and government agree on the importance of reducing illnesses and injuries from hazardous materials in Canadian workplaces. The Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS), a combination of laws, regulations and procedures, was created in 1987 to help achieve this goal.
WHMIS requires suppliers-including manufacturers, importers and distributors-and employers to provide information on the hazards of chemicals produced or used in Canadian workplaces. It requires cautionary labelling for containers of controlled (hazardous) products as designated under federal regulations, and requires that suppliers provide a material safety data sheet (MSDS) for each product.
Each MSDS must include several types of information. For example, it must list all hazardous ingredients in the product, any toxicological properties, the safety precautions workers need to take when using the product, and first-aid treatment in case of exposure. Employers must provide their employees with this MSDS information, as well as with training and education programs.
When labour, industry and government agreed to create WHMIS, they recognized the need to balance the rights of workers and employers to have health and safety information against the rights of chemical suppliers to protect confidential business information.
The Hazardous Materials Information Review Act and its regulations provide the mechanism to create that balance through the Hazardous Materials Information Review Commission (HMIRC). The Commission is an independent agency with a quasi-judicial role that supports the WHMIS responsibilities and interests of the federal, provincial and territorial governments, workers, employers and the chemical industry.
Role of the Commission
If a supplier or employer wants to withhold information that it believes to be a trade secret, it must file a claim with the Commission for exemption from its WHMIS obligations to disclose this information. Our screening officers review these claims against the applicable federal, provincial or territorial regulations, and rule on the claims' validity.
Our scientific evaluators play a key health and safety role in this claim review process. They review the MSDSs and labels associated with a claim for exemption to ensure the information is complete and accurate. This process involves communication between evaluators, screening officers and claimants to ensure transparency. When evaluators identify missing or incorrect information, they advise the screening officers who issue formal orders requiring that claimants make the necessary changes and submit the corrected MSDS within 75 calendar days.
When claimants or affected parties challenge our decisions or orders, the Commission convenes independent boards to hear appeals.
In addition, we respond to requests from federal, provincial and territorial government health and safety officials for information about claims for exemption to help these officials administer and enforce their WHMIS obligations.
A model partnership of key stakeholders across all jurisdictions
HMIRC deals with many WHMIS stakeholders:
- labour organizations and workers;
- suppliers in the chemical industry;
- employers with workplace WHMIS programs; and
- federal, provincial and territorial government agencies with WHMIS responsibilities.
As an independent agency, the Commission is a model of industry, labour and government consultation, consensus and cooperation. Our adjudicative efforts must result in a fair balance between the right of workers to know and the right of suppliers and employers to safeguard confidential business information. We make a tangible contribution to worker health and safety and are a strategic partner to both the industry and employers. Our work also supports the federal, provincial and territorial governments in delivering their occupational safety and health regulatory activities, making the Commission one of very few adjudicative bodies in Canada that represent multiple levels of government.
Governance structure
The Commission's governance structure is a model of collaboration. Our Council of Governors provides strategic advice and guidance to the Commission and makes recommendations to the Minister of Health. It consists of up to 18 members:
- 2 representing workers,
- 1 representing suppliers,
- 1 representing employers,
- 1 representing the federal government, and
- between 4 and 13 representing the provincial and territorial governments responsible for occupational health and safety.
The Commission President and CEO, who is accountable to Parliament through the Minister of Health, supervises and directs the work of the agency.
For a more detailed structure, please refer to Section III - Supplementary Information, Appendix A - HMIRC's Organization.
Risks and challenges
As a small agency, the Commission faces several resource challenges in meeting its mandate: the specialized technical skill sets required of its scientific staff, the scarcity of those skill sets and limited resources to attract talent.
In 2006–2007, the Commission took several steps to attract recruits and prevent critical staff shortages in the future.
A new human resources plan that aligns future human resources needs and expertise with the Commission's long-term business and strategic plan was developed. This plan includes specific strategies to address key Commission needs. The areas of focus chosen for the next two years were recruitment and retention, continuous learning, and workload management.
The Commission has established a partnership with its Health portfolio partners to start building a pool of suitable candidates who can be recruited on short notice. For the Commission's new recruits, a coaching program is place that pairs up new staff members with experienced employees. This approach has proven to be effective in bringing new employees up to a fully functioning level.
The Commission has also put in place a supportive management infrastructure, including risk-based plans, templates and communications tools to increase management accountability and employee awareness of human resources modernization. This has allowed line managers to be more actively involved in human resource planning, continuous learning and development.
The Commission's small size also presents operational challenges. In the 2006–2007 fiscal year, the Commission operated with 30 Full-Time Equivalents (FTEs) and a budget of $3.6 million. About 85% of the Commission's budget is required for salaries; the remaining 15% is designated for non-discretionary or statutory program spending, leaving little or no flexibility for discretionary spending.
Consequently, the Commission must balance its resources very carefully between operational requirements and strategic initiatives. These can be both internally driven and externally mandated. As an example, recent efforts over the past several years to enact the Commission's legislative amendments into law in 2006–2007 heavily taxed the Commission's limited resources, and competed with critical operational activities. Externally, HMIRC is facing ongoing pressure to implement numerous government-wide initiatives, such as the Treasury Board Policy Suite Renewal, the Federal Accountability Act and the Public Service Modernization Act, which aim to improve service and accountability to the Canadian public. The Commission is seriously challenged in its ability to adequately address these resource-intensive initiatives while delivering its own mandate.
Financial Resources ($ thousands)
| Planned Spending | Total Authorities | Actual Spending |
|---|---|---|
| 3,512 | 3,601 | 3,401 |
Human Resources
| Planned | Actual | Difference |
|---|---|---|
| 35 | 30 | 5(1) |
(1) The variance is due to HMIRC's challenge to meet full capacity.
Commission's Priorities ($ thousands)
| 2006–2007 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Status on Performance | Planned Spending | Actual Spending | ||
| Strategic Outcome: Trade secret exemptions within WHMIS that balance the right of industry to withhold bona fide confidential business information with the right of employers and workers to be provided with complete and accurate information on the health and safety hazards posed by workplace chemicals. | ||||
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Claim Exemption Process
|
Successfully met | 3,512 | 3,401 |
Alignment to Government of Canada outcomes
Canada places the health of its population high on the list of key priorities. Canada's public health system exists to safeguard and improve the health of Canadians. The responsibility for public health is spread across federal, provincial and territorial governments. An essential part of any occupational health and safety program is ensuring that those employed in workplaces requiring the use of hazardous materials have the information they need to use those materials without risk of injury and without short or long-term health threats. This is particularly applicable to the Commission's mandate as we deliver the WHMIS trade secret exemption mechanism on behalf of the federal, provincial and territorial governments. The Commission's work supports improved occupational health and safety for Canadian workers, a key element to achieving a healthy Canadian population.
Overall Performance
The Commission's renewal process reached an important milestone in 2006–2007 with the enactment of Bill S-2, An Act to Amend the Hazardous Materials Information Review Act. The amendments reduce the time required to review claims for exemption from disclosure of confidential business information, speed up the correction of the information that workers need to handle hazardous materials safely, and expedite and improve the appeals process. Claimants will find claims simpler to file, and the claims exemption process will be more efficient.
As part of the Commission's commitment to continuous improvement, the claims process and the claims form itself came under scrutiny, with further refinements planned for the next fiscal year. Several tools used to assess MSDSs were updated to ensure the Commission is using the most advanced scientific information available.
The Commission took steps to address recurring challenges in recruiting and retaining specialized scientific staff. Most significantly, the Commission developed a new plan that aligns its human resources needs with its business plan. In addition, the Commission developed a significant alliance with its Health portfolio partners in creating a list of qualified candidates who could be recruited quickly to fill vacancies.
Outreach efforts concentrated on the Web site, the Commission's most important communication and outreach tool. Preparations were made for three major Web site updates in the next fiscal year: to reflect the new legislative amendments, to improve clients' access to information, and to meet a new federal standard on Common Look and Feel for the Internet.
The Commission also worked with Health portfolio partners on several executive-level committees and strengthened ties with the offices of both the Minister and the Deputy Minister of Health. Through extensive interaction with the Minister's office, several members were appointed to the Commission's multi-stakeholder Council of Governors, significantly increasing the effectiveness of the Council as a governing body. For the first time in 10 years, all Council positions requiring the approval of the Minister of Health have been filled. In addition, relationships were strengthened with several stakeholder organizations, and collaborations continued with partner agencies in the Health portfolio.
