One of the main components of the Excellence Program is evidence submission. While we’ve recently learned how to upload evidence to the WSIB Excellence Portal, let’s take a moment to think about the types of evidence you can start collecting while you work through your topics in the Excellence program.
The WSIB has outlined four guiding principles for the collection and use of topic evidence.
Ensure the evidence you are submitting demonstrates how this topic is making your workplace safer.
Your goal is to demonstrate that your steps of implementation, has resulted in the topic now “living and breathing” in your workplace.
Use multiple forms of evidence. This includes, but is not limited to, documents, records, forms, videos, photos, audio recordings, posters, and emails.
Completeness, ensure the evidence supports the who, what, when, where, why and how of the topic.
Remember, not everything you do for the topic implementation needs to be uploaded to the portal. Pick two or three evidentiary items that demonstrate your topic is living and breathing in the workplace. For example, a copy of a policy really does not demonstrate that a policy is living and breathing in your workplace put a photo of the policy fulfilled will. A policy on PPE is part of the program but a picture showing a group or workers properly wearing their PPE demonstrates that the policy is understood and followed.
If you have already started implementing the topics and have had a group conversation with employees about the topic, document the conversation and provide a transcript of the conversation as evidence. Think about the pieces of evidence that show the topic has been entrenched in your workplace.
In your Topic Worksheet, you would have planned for items to be uploaded as evidence. You may find as you work through the topics, different items of evidence may work better, and that is perfectly acceptable. Keep in mind, all evidence submitted to the WSIB will be desk audited, and they may ask you for more information. It is better to err on the side of caution than be left with needing additional evidence and grasping for evidence items months after topic completion.
There is an excellent resource created by the WSIB that provides examples of potential evidence for each topic in the Excellence program. Consult the Topic Validation Guide for ideas on types of evidence, specific for each topic. As always, if you have any questions or want to clarify an idea, please reach out to us at Dunk & Associates and we will gladly help you with this step.