National Construction Safety Officer (NCSO)™ & National Health & Safety Administrator (NHSA)™
Here at the Alberta Construction Safety Association, we offer a path to earning one of two construction safety designations: National Construction Safety Officer (NCSO)™ and National Health & Safety Administrator (NHSA)™. These designations indicate that the individual has knowledge in various construction-related health & safety management skills and principles. When a person completes these programs, they are ready to begin the career-long process of becoming a leader in construction safety.
The distinguishing difference between the designations is the requirement for three (3) years of ‘field experience’ to be eligible for the NCSO as opposed to the NHSA.
The construction field is defined and established as working directly and actively in the construction field (i.e: residential, commercial, industrial, road building, pipeline construction, mobile equipment operations, etc.); or, an individual who is directly and actively engaged in safety (i.e: Site Safety Coordinator) or responsible for the supervision (i.e: Site Superintendent) of the construction worker, who also works directly and actively in the construction field on a full time basis.
Important Changes to Your HSA Designation
Effective April 2023, those with or working towards their provincial Health and Safety Administrator (HSA) designation can receive their National Health and Safety Administrator (NHSA) designation. The NHSA is accepted across Canada.
Learn more on the NHSA page.
Requirements for NCSO™ & NHSA™
Below is a comparison chart outlining the differences in obtaining the NCSO designation from the NHSA designation (bullets indicate requirements).
NCSO |
NHSA |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Successful certification in the eleven compulsory courses (see Program Outline section below) | • | • | ||
| Successful completion in certification of two elective courses (see Program Outline section below) | • | • | ||
| Letter of experience verifying a minimum of 3 years of field experience in the construction industry (see the Downloads section on this webpage) | • | |||
| LSE Proficiency Package (see the Downloads section on this webpage) | • | |||
| Certified Auditor | • | |||
| Final Exam | • | • |
To register for the NCSO program, please go to the NCSO information page.
To register for the NHSA program, please go to the NHSA information page.
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Revised: April 1, 2023