At its hearings this week on Bill 163 (PTSD Bill), the Standing Committee on Social Policy heard from a number of witnesses that the current legislation excludes job categories that should be covered. Amongst other things, BIll 163 would make post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) a workplace illness. Witnesses (including the Ontario Provincial Police Association, the Police Association of Ontario, the Ontario Association of Paramedic Chiefs, the Canadian Mental Health Association, and CUPE) identified a number of job categories that they think should be covered, including

• Dispatchers (which are currently covered in the Bill, but only in a limited fashion according to The Ontario Provincial Police Association)
• Civilians working in forensic crime units and the Violent Crime Linkage Analysis system
• Special constables
• Communicator call takers
• Investigative support staff
• Forensics staff
• Garage personnel
• Probation and parole officers
• Provincial bailiffs
• First-responder teams in northern, rural and remote communities (often volunteers)
• Privately contracted security professionals (especially those working in detention centres, hospitals, and correctional institutions)
• Front-line workers in psychiatric hospitals

For more: Bill 163, Supporting Ontario's First Responders Act (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder)  Committee Transcripts, Standing Committee on Social Policy