Ontario is targeting maintenance of safety equipment, worker training, the use of safety equipment and other potential health and safety hazards during enforcement blitzes at workplaces across the province, according to a news release.

Inspectors from the Ministry of Labour will conduct three blitzes by visiting underground mines in January and February to check on diesel emissions and other hazards that could affect air quality; industrial and construction workplaces in February and March to check for slips, trips and falls hazards; and health-care workplaces in February and March to check on workplace violence and harassment.

The blitzes are designed to raise awareness of health and safety in the workplace, prevent injuries and illnesses that could arise from unsafe work practices, and check that workplaces are complying with the law.

During blitzes, inspectors will check on condition and to help prevent workplace injuries.

This past fall, blitzes also targeted supervision at construction sites, machine guarding hazards at industrial workplaces, infection prevention and control at health-care workplaces and ore transfer in underground mines.

Since 2008, ministry inspectors have conducted more than 345,000 field visits, 47 inspection blitzes and issued more than 560,000 compliance orders in Ontario workplaces.