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263.   Refusal to work on safety and health grounds

Revised Laws of Saint Lucia (2022)

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263.   Refusal to work on safety and health grounds

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    (1)   An employee may refuse to work or do particular work where the employee has reason to believe that—

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      (a)     any equipment, machine, device, substance or article the employee is to use or operate presents an imminent and serious danger to the life or health of himself or herself or another worker; or

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      (b)     the physical condition of the workplace or the part in which the employee works or is to work presents an imminent and serious danger to his or her life, safety or health,

until such time as the employee believes that measures have been undertaken by the employer to address the employees concerns.

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    (2)   The provisions in this section shall not apply to an employee who belongs to any of the categories of persons specified for such purpose in an Order of the Minister published in the Gazette.

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    (3)   The categories of persons to which subsection (2) refer may be—

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      (a)     persons employed in or members of the Police Force or the Fire Service;

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      (b)     persons employed in or members of the Correctional Service or in the operation of a correctional institution or facility; (Amended by Act 6 of 2011)

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      (c)     persons employed in the operation of—

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        (i)     a hospital, sanatorium, nursing home, home for the aged, psychiatric institution, mental health centre or a rehabilitation facility,

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        (ii)     an ambulance service or a first aid clinic or station,

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        (iii)     a power plant or technical service or facility used in conjunction with an institution, facility or service described in paragraph (c)(i) and (ii);

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      (d)     persons who are employed by the State to carry out public health or public utility duties such as quarantine, emergency health containment or other emergency or public health services; or

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      (e)     persons employed in waste disposal or sanitation; or

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      (f)     persons employed in any essential service.

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    (4)   Upon refusing to work or do particular work, the employee shall promptly report the circumstances of his or her refusal to the employer who shall promptly investigate the report in the presence of the employee and, if there is such, in the presence of one of the following—

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      (a)     a committee member who represents employees;

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      (b)     a safety and health representative; or

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      (c)     an employee who because of knowledge, experience and training is selected by a trade union that represents the employee, or if there is no trade union, is selected by the employees to represent them, and who shall attend without delay.

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    (5)   Until the investigation is completed, the employee shall remain in a safe place near his or her work station.

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    (6)   An employee who refuses to work under subsection (1), shall be deemed to be at work and his or her employer shall pay him or her at the regular or premium rate, for the time extending from the time when the employee started to refuse to work under subsection (1) to the time when the investigation mentioned in subsection (4) is completed.

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    (7)   An employer shall report the employees concerns to the Department of Labour which shall investigate the refusal to work in the presence of the employer or a person representing the employer, the employee, and the person mentioned in subsection (4), if any.

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    (8)   The Department of Labour shall, following the investigation referred to in subsection (7), decide whether the machine, device, article or the workplace or part presents an imminent and serious danger to the life, safety or health of the employee or another person.

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    (9)   The Department of Labour shall, within 5 working days of a report to it under subsection (7), give its decision in writing to the employer, the employee, and the person mentioned in subsection (4), if any.

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    (10)   Pending an investigation and decision of the Department of Labour, an employer, subject to the provisions of a collective agreement, if any, shall—

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      (a)     assign the employee reasonable alternative work during such hours; or

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      (b)     where an assignment of reasonable alternative work is not practicable, give other directions to the employee.

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    (11)   Pending an investigation and decision of the Department of Labour, no employee shall be assigned to use or operate the equipment, machine, device or article or to work in the workplace or in the part of the workplace being investigated as long as there is continuing imminent and serious danger to the life, safety or health of any employee or person and until after the employer has taken remedial action, if necessary, to deal with the circumstances that caused the employee to refuse to do particular work.

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    (12)   A person mentioned in subsection (4), shall be deemed to be at work and the person's employer shall pay him or her at the regular or premium rate for the time spent by the person carrying out the duties under this section.

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