COR and SECOR Training
COR and SECOR training helps employers build a health and safety management system that works every day, prepare honestly for a COR audit or SECOR evaluation, and keep the certificate once it’s earned.
Most employers don’t start working toward a Certificate of Recognition because they love audits. They start because an owner or prime contractor asked for one, a bid depended on it, or they want a safety program that holds together when the person who built it is away. Then the questions pile up. Which certifying partner do we register with? COR or SECOR? What will an auditor actually check, and how long will it take?
Calgary Safety Consultants built a self-paced online course, COR and SECOR Readiness for Employers, to answer those questions in plain language. It’s for employers in any industry, anywhere in Canada, from small contractors weighing SECOR to larger companies keeping a COR through maintenance years.
Enrol individual learners today, buy seats for your leadership team, or book a free 30-minute Consultation if you’d like hands-on help getting your program ready.
Online COR and SECOR readiness training for employers in Calgary, Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and across Canada.
Online course
Online COR and SECOR Readiness Training for Employers
A certificate of recognition belongs to the whole company, not to one safety coordinator. Owners and senior managers need to understand what they’re committing to. Managers and supervisors need to know what auditors will ask them and why. The person leading the effort needs a clear plan from registration to certificate and beyond.
Our course follows the path an employer actually takes: choosing COR or SECOR and the right certifying partner, building the system auditors look for, running it long enough to show it works, getting audit ready and keeping the certificate afterward.
COR and SECOR Readiness for Employers
For owners, senior managers, operations and HR managers, safety coordinators and the people leading a COR or SECOR effort in any industry across Canada.
- 16 narrated video lessons in five modules
- about 5.5 hours (estimated)
- a three-question knowledge check after every lesson
- a 16-question final exam
- a 106-page Student Reference Guide with 14 worksheets and checklists
- $45.99 CAD plus GST per learner
Buying for a team? Employers can buy seats for several learners in one order, and 10 or more seats of the same course in one order saves 10%. After you check out, complete our Group Training Student Information form so we can set up each learner’s account.
Why it matters
Why COR and SECOR Training Matters for Employers
Many owners and prime contractors ask for a COR or an equivalent before they’ll invite you to bid, and some workers’ compensation boards reward employers who earn and keep one. In Alberta, for example, the Partnerships in Injury Reduction program can refund part of an employer’s premiums for maintaining a COR.
The bigger payoff is a system that finds hazards early, keeps running when your safety coordinator is on holidays and holds up when an auditor reads your records, watches the work and talks to your people. Companies that treat COR as a binder exercise often find out the hard way, when workers can’t describe the hazards on their own job or inspection records stop months before the audit.
When the people leading the effort understand the whole road, the results show up in day-to-day work:
- fewer incidents, near misses and WCB claims
- a realistic plan, timeline and budget
- leaders who can explain the system in an interview
- records that match what really happens on site
- stronger owner prequalification and bids
- smoother maintenance years and renewals
COR and SECOR sit on top of OH&S law, not in place of it. A certificate doesn’t stop inspections, orders or charges, and the legal duties of employers, supervisors and workers apply whether or not you hold one.
This is preparation and awareness training for employers. It doesn’t certify any company or person, it isn’t COR auditor or SECOR assessor training, it doesn’t replace or count toward any certifying partner’s required courses, and it doesn’t promise an audit result.
Records that match the workDocuments, interviews and observations that agree
A system your crews can explainHazard assessments done with the people doing the workCourse content
What Does COR and SECOR Training Cover?
Five modules follow the road to a certificate, from your first decision to your maintenance years:
Module One: Understanding COR and SECOR. What the programs recognize, how certifying partners work across Canada and the road to certification.
Module Two: Building the System Auditors Look For. The health and safety management system, leadership, policy and responsibilities, hazard assessment and control, and safe work practices, procedures, training and competency.
Module Three: Putting the System to Work. Inspections and preventive maintenance, incident reporting and investigation, emergency preparedness, and communication, participation and contractors.
Module Four: Getting Audit Ready. Credible records and the three ways auditors gather evidence, preparing people honestly for interviews and observations, and gap assessments, action plans and the audit itself.
Module Five: SECOR and Keeping Your Certificate. SECOR and small employer programs, then maintenance years, management review and continual improvement.
Lessons use workplace examples and decision points from real Canadian settings, such as a lost bid in Lethbridge, a resort in Banff or a five-person HVAC company in Red Deer. Hazard identification uses the 12 CSC Energy Sources, such as Gravity, Motion and Psychosocial.
The Student Reference Guide includes seven COR and SECOR reference tables and 14 practical worksheets and checklists, from a COR or SECOR decision checklist and a 12-month certification planner to a gap assessment and action plan worksheet and a maintenance year calendar. They’re readiness aids, not audit tools, and they don’t replace any certifying partner’s audit tool or self-evaluation.
Lesson Ten on emergency preparedness holds to the same standard as all our training: in a high-potential emergency, people evacuate and call 911, and only trained and assigned people do anything more.
COR across Canada
How COR and SECOR Work Across Canada
A Certificate of Recognition recognizes a health and safety management system that’s been audited against a recognized standard and found to be working. You earn it through a certifying partner, the organization authorized to run the program for your industry and region. The certifying partner sets the required training, audit tool and audit process. SECOR, the Small Employer Certificate of Recognition, is a version for smaller businesses where a program offers it.
For construction, the Canadian Federation of Construction Safety Associations (CFCSA) sets a national COR standard that member associations deliver in each province and territory. Some provinces run COR more widely. Alberta and British Columbia run COR across industries, Manitoba certifies employers through SAFE Work Certified, and Yukon requires COR on Government of Yukon construction projects.
Under the national standard, COR is valid for up to three years and must be validated every year, with 80% overall and at least 50% in each element to pass. Pass marks, size limits for SECOR, deadlines and auditor rules differ by program, so always check with your certifying partner. The course’s reference tables summarize COR and SECOR programs in all 14 jurisdictions, checked against official sources in November 2026.
Calgary Safety Consultants isn’t a certifying partner and doesn’t issue COR or SECOR certificates. This course isn’t affiliated with or endorsed by any certifying partner, workers’ compensation board, government COR program or the CFCSA.
COR or SECOR, sized to fitThe right program for your size and your sitesBeyond training
Need Help Getting Ready for COR or SECOR?
Training gives your leaders the map. Some employers also want an experienced set of eyes on the program itself. Calgary Safety Consultants provides COR and SECOR consulting, program development and audit-preparation support. Certificates are issued through your certifying partner, and the audit result depends on your system and your people.
A COR Readiness Review or COR Gap Review shows where your system stands before you commit to an audit. A Mock COR Audit tests your program through documents, interviews and observation, and SECOR Evaluation Prep reviews your records and evaluation before you submit. Starting from scratch? See our Starter Safety Manual Package and Certification-Ready Package, or the full range on our COR and SECOR Certification Support page.
Our free COR, SECOR and Prequalification guides go deeper on preparing for a COR audit, preparing for a SECOR evaluation and preparing workers and supervisors for audit interviews.
How the online course works
How Online COR and SECOR Training Works
Enrol
Enrol on the course page, or buy seats for your team and send us each learner’s details with the Group Training Student Information form.
Work through the lessons
Watch each narrated lesson and pass its three-question knowledge check (100%, with feedback and unlimited retries) before moving on. Stop and return whenever you need to.
Pass the final exam
After Lesson 16, complete the 16-question final exam with 13 or more correct (80%), then download your Certificate of Completion.
Put it to work
Use the Student Reference Guide’s planner, worksheets and checklists with your team, and check them against your certifying partner’s current rules.
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions About COR and SECOR Training
Clear answers about who the training is for, what it does and doesn’t do, how long it takes and how to enrol a team.
What is COR and SECOR training?
COR and SECOR training helps employers understand what a Certificate of Recognition (COR) or Small Employer Certificate of Recognition (SECOR) recognizes and how to build, run and maintain a health and safety management system that holds up at audit. Our online course is preparation and awareness training for employers. It covers how the programs work across Canada, the elements auditors look for, honest audit preparation, SECOR for small employers and keeping your certificate.
Does this course replace my certifying partner’s required courses?
No. It doesn’t replace or count toward any certifying partner’s required courses, such as its management system, leadership, small employer or auditor courses, and it isn’t COR auditor or SECOR assessor training. Register for the courses your certifying partner requires, and use this course to understand the whole road and prepare your people.
Who should take it?
Owners, presidents and senior managers, operations, HR and general managers, safety coordinators and program leads, and small business owners weighing SECOR. It also suits supervisors and managers who’ll be interviewed during an audit, and employers who’ve been asked for COR in a bid or prequalification.
Does Calgary Safety Consultants issue COR or SECOR certificates?
No. Certificates are issued through certifying partners, sometimes jointly with a government or workers’ compensation board, depending on the program. Calgary Safety Consultants provides COR and SECOR consulting, program development and audit-preparation support. We aren’t a certifying partner, and this course isn’t affiliated with or endorsed by any certifying partner, workers’ compensation board, government COR program or the CFCSA.
Does the training apply in my province or territory?
Yes. The course teaches the fundamentals COR programs share across all 14 Canadian jurisdictions, and its Student Reference Guide summarizes program details by jurisdiction. Your certifying partner’s current standard, audit tool and program rules are what apply to you, so check them before you plan your audit.
How long does the training take?
We estimate about 5.5 hours: about 5 hours of narrated lesson video, plus the knowledge checks and final exam. The course is self-paced, so you can stop and return whenever you need to.
Is the training available as a live class or onsite?
COR and SECOR Readiness for Employers is offered as self-paced online training, so learners can start at any time. If you’d like hands-on help with your program, book a free 30-minute Consultation to talk about our COR and SECOR consulting support.
Will the course help us pass our COR audit or SECOR evaluation?
It will help you build a system that works and prepare your people honestly, but no course can promise an audit result. Your result depends on your system, your records and how the work is really done on your sites.
Do learners receive a certificate?
Yes. Learners who complete all 16 lessons and their knowledge checks and pass the 16-question final exam can download a Certificate of Completion. It records completion of online preparation and awareness training. It isn’t a COR or SECOR and doesn’t count toward any certifying partner’s training requirements.
How much does the training cost, and can I enrol my team?
The course is priced per learner, plus GST, and the current price is shown on its course page. Employers can buy seats for several learners in one order, and a 10% group discount applies to 10 or more seats of the same course. After you check out, complete our Group Training Student Information form so we can set up each learner’s account.
Get started
Start Your COR and SECOR Training Today
Give your leaders a clear picture of the road to COR or SECOR and what it takes to keep the certificate. Enrol online today, or book a free 30-minute Consultation to talk through your program.
Training a team?
Group enrolment for online courses
Enrol your crew, supervisors or safety committee in any of our online courses. Buy your enrolments online, then complete our Group Training Student Information form so we can set up an individual account for each worker. Each worker completes the training online and receives a certificate of completion. Training 10 or more workers on the same course? A 10% group discount is applied automatically at checkout. For instructor-led training or a custom group arrangement, use the form below to request a group quote.