We are an association of Ontario employers seeking to improve occupational health and safety in the workplace, while supporting economic competitiveness. The participants are mostly Occupational Health & Safety practitioners and others who share a common concern for health and safety in the workplace.

The Business Council was created to promote a more effective public policy framework for Occupational Health & Safety in Ontario. To do this, BCOHS maintains a program of policy research and analysis to develop a more objective understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of OH&S policy and administration, and to assess alternatives that are more effective. 

Member Meetings

BCOHS holds regular meetings of members, at which information on OH&S management systems, Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training & Skills Development regulation or policy development, and Workplace Safety & Insurance Board policy developments are reviewed, and member concerns and ideas are discussed.

Planned meetings for 2024 are:

February 13, April 30, June 18, September 10 and November 19. Contact the Administrator if you would like to attend as a guest.

A Little History

BCOHS is a member-funded, not-for-profit corporation operating on a business model. Membership fees support our activities, and pay for administrative, research, consulting, and financial management services. BCOHS is not a trade association, a subscription information group, or an ad-hoc, specific-issue coalition.

BCOHS was established in March of 1992 by a group of employers representing the energy, chemical, electronics, petroleum, packaging, publishing, and consumer products sectors. The founding-member companies were determined to develop a process that would provide more focused interaction with government agencies to improve the protection of employees in the workplace and at the same time make the Occupational Health & Safety Policy Framework more business-friendly and supportive of economic prosperity. 

The BCOHS has worked with the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training & Skills Development on many regulatory and policy changes. We led the discussions with the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board culminating in the concept of Accreditation. We continue to lobby for the development of an effective system. We have played a role in the Dean Expert Panel and we continue to support the Prevention Employer Partners group which provides feedback to the Chief Prevention Officer.