Lift Smart, Stay Safe: Rigging, Slinging, and Hand Signals

Yes. The Canada Labour Code, Part II and the Canada Occupational Health and Safety Regulations (COHSR) Part XV require that workers involved in hoisting and rigging be competent persons - meaning they have documented knowledge, training, and experience to perform the work safely without close supervision. Every province and territory mirrors these obligations: Alberta's OHS Code Part 23, BC's OHS Regulation Part 14, and Ontario's OHSA all require equipment certification, operator competency, and written safe work procedures. Relying solely on on-the-job observation is not sufficient if a regulator or insurer asks for documentation of competency.

As the angle between sling legs widens toward horizontal, the tension on each leg increases dramatically even though the load weight stays the same. Lifting a 2,000 kg load with two slings at 60 degrees puts roughly 1,155 kg of tension on each leg, but at 30 degrees that jumps to 2,000 kg per leg - effectively doubling the load on equipment rated for a vertical pick. Alberta's OHS Code Part 23 and BC's OHS Regulation Section 14.46 both reference load angle factors when determining rigging capacity. A 60-degree minimum sling angle is the widely accepted Canadian industry standard, and rigging below 30 degrees can exceed the Working Load Limit of properly rated equipment.

A written lift plan is mandatory across Canadian jurisdictions for any critical lift, including lifts near energized overhead power lines, tandem or multi-crane lifts, lifts over occupied areas or public spaces, and lifts that exceed 75 to 85 percent of the crane's rated capacity (the threshold varies by jurisdiction). Alberta's OHS Code Part 23 Section 312, BC's OHS Regulation Section 14.36, and Ontario's O. Reg. 213/91 under the Construction Regulation all contain these requirements. For routine lifts, a simple one-page signed form is often sufficient - and is what a safety audit will ask to see.

Tag the equipment out of service immediately using a standardized Out of Service tag and report it to your supervisor - no exceptions, regardless of how small or quick the planned lift is. For wire rope, look for broken wires, kinks, bird-caging, or crushed sections; for synthetic slings, check for cuts, fraying, heat damage, or chemical staining; for hardware, verify that safety latches function and that the WLL marking is still legible. Alberta's OHS Code Section 310 and BC's OHS Regulation Section 14.38 both require that defective rigging equipment be removed from service immediately. If the WLL marking has worn off a piece of hardware, it must also be taken out of service.

Responsibility is shared across the entire rigging team, but supervisors and employers carry the heaviest legal exposure. Under Alberta's OHS Act Section 3 and BC's Workers Compensation Act Section 117, both employers and supervisors have a legal duty to ensure work is performed safely, and a supervisor who allows a lift to proceed without proper controls can be held personally liable. The crane operator has both the legal right and the duty to refuse an unsafe lift even under direct instruction from a supervisor or client - following an unsafe order is not a defence under Canadian OHS legislation. The rigger, signal person, and supervisor each have defined, non-overlapping responsibilities, and confusion about those roles is itself classified as a worksite hazard.