Ontario Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk’s 2019 annual report was released on December 4, 2019. Lysyk's value-for-money audit of the ministry’s health and safety programs contains 13 recommendations, with 26 action items.
The Auditor General’s report found that the Ministry of Labour system contains only 28% of all businesses in Ontario and that it proactively inspects about 1% of Ontario businesses each year and investigates an additional 1% of businesses for incidents that have occurred.
In the construction sector, 65% of companies had repeatedly been issued orders relating to fall protection hazards. Furthermore, although under the Act the employer bears the most responsibility for ensuring the health and safety of its workers, almost all fines were issued to individuals such as workers and supervisors, rather than employers.