job safety rights

[ac shep]

I am having a very difficult time finding anything in relation to my rights of what I am allowed to pertaining to my workplace safety. I n N.B. Canada a Bylaw/ACO is a (peace officer) under the provincial police act, this being said I have searched up and down at a government occupation website as to what rights we have and what we can carry for a safer work enviroment.
Is there any Canadian or Newbrunswick officers who can provide my department and I any legal documentation that could assist us. we carry no spray or bite sticks and could have prevented injuries over the years if we had been able to deploy either of these.
Thanks,Mike

[carrie_cat]

Hi!

I'm not an expert -- and particularly, not on CANADA! -- but you might want to talk with someone in the "risk management" business or someone in that area in your province government. Maybe they will have worked with some other agencies to find the appropriate balance of protection/education/safety/insurance!

[hasbeenaco]

I'm Canadian, I'm far from an expert, but here's what I know. I've done bylaw enforcement and been a cruelty officer here in Ontario, but the way I've always understood it is that working in those capacities has afforded me CERTAIN police powers. With those powers however, there has never been any sort of assumption that I am a 'police officer'. As a matter of fact, it was made painfully clear that I was notentitled to any of the privileges or protections that police are. In short, it came down to weighing the risks of every situation very carefully and realizing (many times) that I simply couldn't afford the risk of proceeding.

Things may very well be different out east, especially if you are directly employed by a municipality and actually work as an arm of the police department. Around here the level of officer protection varies from agency to agency. It can range from absolutely nothing to bullet proof vests, bite sticks, spray and yes, even handcuffs. My guess is that you too are at the mercy of your agency. I'm not aware of any provincial or federal regulations covering ACOs.

[ac shep]

Thanks for the responses, I have put considerable time into researching this and have come up with 3 federal safety acts, that my employer would have to address and comply to.That being said it comes down to them providing what my union deems protective equipment that I need when approaching homes on a complaints and dealing with aggressive dogs. My employer should be getting in line with the required equipment or could have article 128 enforced on them by health and safety= I would sit at home with full pay until they adhered these stipulations, as of today I at least can carry a bite stick.

[gun papa]

I find the OC spray to be less than effective with highly aggitated or aggressive dogs. The dogs just are not effected by it when they are determined.
I have found on several occasions wasting critical response time diverting my attention from the aggressive dog to determine if there is a breeze that may direct the spray or its mist back at me thus adding OC spray in my face to the aggressive dog problem.

The ASP or bite stick in my opinion is a must, as is a long metal clipboard, both used together much like a sheild/sword combination would be.

Critical tools in my experience.

At the very least, if you cannot get an ASP. get the longest metal clipboard they make, like a 15" one. That has saved me several times.

[Dog-Face]

I am doing in enforcement in NewBrunswick Canada. As far as I know aco's, dco's are not recognized as peace officers. As far as peace officer status it is only animal protection officers who have this status. We cary OC and asps. What exactly are you trying to figure out? I've been at it a while and have a pretty good grasp of things.

[Dog-Face]

A good mag-light is a great substitue for those who do not qualify to carry an asp...