July Newsletter

Beyond the Minimum:
OHS Laws & a Farm’s Responsibilities
for the Safety of Others

This summary is based on incidents that occurred in Saskatchewan in 2024 and 2025, and was recently covered in The Western Producer.

What Happened

A man was cutting grass on his property when a contracted spray plane flew over his yard while applying pesticides to surrounding cropland. A similar incident had occurred in 2024, where pesticide drift reportedly damaged the family’s garden.

After the 2024 incident, the acreage owner spoke with the local farmer, and the aerial applicator compensated the family for the damage.

Following a similar flyover in 2025, the situation escalated. In an interview, the individual stated:

“We are never advised when application is to take place or what is being applied. In both of these incidents, me and my wife were in the yard … fully exposing us to the chemicals being applied… We’re (now) in a court battle over it.”

Source: Acreage owners take spray plane firm to court  

What to Understand

Under occupational health and safety (OHS) legislation, farms have a responsibility to help ensure work is carried out safely not only for workers and contractors, but also in a way that minimizes risk to others who may be affected by their operations, including neighbours.

While this case is proceeding through civil court and appears to focus on the aerial applicator, situations like this can fall under OHS legislation and involve the shared responsibility for health and safety of both the farm and the contractor.

Farms often hire contractors to complete work they don’t have the time, equipment, or expertise to do themselves. For example:

• A mechanic repairing equipment in a field

• A veterinarian treating livestock

• An aerial applicator spraying crops

While contractors bring specialized skills, hiring them does not remove all safety responsibility from the farm. When a farm brings a contractor onto the work site, it still has important OHS responsibilities related to that work.

These responsibilities include taking reasonable steps to ensure:

• The contractor is informed of any hazards related to the farm and its operations

• The work can be performed safely, with appropriate controls in place

• The contractor understands their own safety responsibilities and has systems in place to follow applicable requirements (such as OHS legislation, transportation of dangerous goods (TDG) regulations, and licensing requirements).

Key Takeaways

• A farm can hold more than one legal role at the same time (e.g., owner, contracting employer and supervisor in this case) and each role comes with its own responsibilities.

• Hiring a contractor does not remove a farm’s health and safety responsibilities.

• If the farm directs the work, controls the work site, or provides supervision to any degree, it can take on additional legal duties.

• Farms are considered work sites under OHS law, meaning responsibilities extend beyond employees to include contractors, service providers, visitors and others who could be affected by the work.

• Only one party can control a work site at a time if this is unclear or not properly assigned, responsibility may fall back to the farm.

• Managing  contractors, communicating hazards and demonstrating due diligence are key to  meeting legal obligations and protecting everyone on the work site.

Coming Soon…

Watch for AgSafe Alberta’s Managing Contractors on Alberta Farms: A Practical Guide. This resource is in the final stages of development and will help you:

• Better understand contractor-related situations and the risks involved

• Access simple, customizable templates you can use right away

• Identify what to look for when selecting and hiring a contractor

• Take practical steps to support due diligence and safer work practices