📚 Guide by Safety Mom · Allstar Enviro Safety — The Winter Safety is an online workplace safety course delivered by Safety Mom · Allstar Enviro Safety, Calgary’s Energy Safety Canada Authorized Training Provider. Self-paced, mobile-friendly, same-day certificate upon exam completion. Available across Canada.
🔗 Related Safety Mom courses & guides: H2S Alive Calgary · TDG Guide · Oil Sands Safety Certs · Instructor: Arliss Levine, CRSP, CHSC
WINTER SAFETY ONLINE COURSE OVERVIEW
Employers have discovered that their employees miss more time from work as a result of off-the-job accidents than due to injuries experienced on the job. Many of these accidents occur during the winter holidays, as employees do things that they are not familiar with or haven’t done since the year before. Fortunately, most of these accidents can be prevented.
This course shows employees how to plan ahead, look for potential hazards, and avoid dangerous situations that occur during the winter holiday season.
WINTER SAFETY ONLINE COURSE TOPICS
- Christmas trees (selecting, transporting, and setting up)
- Using string lights
- Safe use of extension cords and outlets
- Fires, fireplaces and chimneys
- Using candles
- Fire extinguishers and fire escapes
- Dressing for cold weather
- Working in the cold
- Walking and driving in ice and snow
- And more!
WINTER SAFETY ONLINE COURSE DURATION: Approximately 30 minutes
WINTER SAFETY TEST: Testing conducted in this online winter safety course is designed to reinforce the information presented. A mark of 80% must be achieved in order to receive a certificate of completion. Participants are able to repeat the course twice if the pass mark is not achieved.
WINTER SAFETY CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION: Upon successful completion of this online course, a certificate of completion will be available to download and print.
WINTER SAFETY ONLINE COURSE PREVIEW:
Additional Safety Knowledge
Musculoskeletal Injuries in Alberta Workplaces
Musculoskeletal injuries (MSIs) account for approximately 40% of Alberta’s lost-time workplace injuries. Back injuries alone are the single largest category. Common causes include manual material handling, repetitive motion, awkward postures, sustained static positions, and forceful exertions. WCB Alberta claim costs for MSIs run into the hundreds of millions annually.
Safe Lifting Principles
- Assess the load before lifting — if it looks too heavy, use mechanical assistance or team lift.
- Alberta OHS advises single-person lifts should not exceed 23 kg (50 lb) as a general benchmark, though the NIOSH Lifting Equation accounts for many variables.
- Keep the load close to the body — every 25 cm from the spine roughly doubles compressive force on lumbar discs.
- Bend at the hips and knees, not the waist. Maintain the natural curve of the lumbar spine.
- Avoid twisting while lifting — turn the whole body by moving the feet.
- Plan the lift path: is it clear? Where are you setting the load?
Cold Stress and Hearing Conservation
Alberta workers face specific environmental hazards. Cold stress: hypothermia can develop above freezing in wet or windy conditions. Layered clothing, warm-up breaks, hot drinks, and monitoring for early symptoms (shivering, confusion) are required. Hearing loss: Alberta OHS 8-hour exposure limit is 85 dBA. Hearing protection required above 85 dBA; hearing conservation program (baseline audiogram, annual monitoring, education) required above 85 dBA sustained exposure. Once noise-induced hearing loss occurs, it is permanent.
Winter Safety — Recognising Early Symptoms
Report discomfort early — the earlier an MSI is caught, the more likely full recovery. Early warning signs: pain, tingling, numbness, weakness, reduced range of motion, joint stiffness. Do not “work through the pain.” Alberta workers have the right to report workplace injuries to WCB and to seek modified work during recovery.
Content reviewed by Arliss Levine, CRSP, CHSC — lead safety instructor at Safety Mom · Allstar Enviro Safety Calgary, an Energy Safety Canada Authorized Training Provider.
