Having a Certificate of Recognition (COR) offers many benefits to a company. Benefits vary from province to province, and we are lucky to operate in Alberta, where benefits can be more substantial than many other provinces.
First of all, Occupational Health and Safety and Labour Standards are regulated through a variety of mechanisms, such as acts, regulations, guidelines, standards, and codes. Typically partnered with Occupational Health and Safety legislation are Worker’s Compensation Acts, which are administered through provincial Worker’s Compensation Boards. These governing bodies – working with employers – have developed a program that is designed to help company’s lower their WCB premiums by promoting injury prevention and the creation of effective Health and Safety programs, as well as functional return-to-work plans. This program is called Partnerships in Industry Reduction (PIR), and all employers who are involved in the program can earn rebates of up to 20% on their industry rate. To distribute rebates, all companies in the PIR inventory must be evaluated against a standard. Therefore, one of the requirements to be eligible for the 20% rebate is to maintain your COR. By obtaining a COR, companies are demonstrating that they have a Health and Safety program that meets the set provincial standards, which have been established by Occupational Health and Safety legislation. COR must be maintained to receive any financial incentives through the Worker’ Compensation Board.
The second benefit of maintaining COR goes hand-in-hand with the WCB rebate. By maintaining a COR, companies are demonstrating that their Health and Safety Management Programs are effective. Effective Health and Safety Management Programs have been proven to have an impact on injury reduction. By reducing – or eliminating entirely – workplace injuries, your company can become an industry leader. Industry leading companies then become the standard by which other companies are measured.
Finally, some Alberta corporations may require bidding contractors to hold a valid COR. This gives COR holding companies a leg up in their industry, as they are eligible for work that their non-COR holding competitors cannot even bid for. Companies, such as Suncor, require their contractors to hold COR because it is one less step in the vetting process that they do not have to go through. When they see a company is a COR holder, they automatically are aware the contractor holds their company and employees to certain safety standards, and follows the appropriate practices to maintain these standards.
Holding COR has many benefits for a company, and if nothing else, is a medium for them to ensure they are doing their due diligence to provide their employees with a healthy and safe workplace.