Montana Safety Committees: What you need to know

Employers with five or more employees must have a safety program that includes a safety committee. See the state Safety Plans topic for more information about safety program requirements.

Employers with five or more employees must have a safety program for workers’ compensation purposes that includes a safety committee with both employee and employer representatives.

Every safety committee must be composed of employee and employer representatives and hold regularly scheduled meetings at least once every 4 months.

Safety committee functions should include activities that assist the employer in fact-finding.

Employers with multiple workplaces may elect to have more than one committee.

Committee membership. Each committee should be of sufficient size and number to provide for effective representation of the workforce. The safety committee must include in its membership representatives of employees and employer, with employer representatives not exceeding employee representatives, and include in its employee membership volunteers or members elected by their peers. Where employees are represented by a labor organization(s), that organization may choose to appoint or conduct elections to select employee members to serve on a safety committee.

Exceptions. The safety committee requirement may be waived if:

• The employer insured by an insurance carrier (Compensation Plan 2 or Plan 3) presents sufficient evidence of low injuries and evidence of other safety procedures.
• A self-insured employer (Compensation Plan 1) has implemented an effective written safety plan.