Basic or Intermediate? Booking First Aid Post-WSIB Rename

The recent WSIB rename has left many employers staring at a booking form, wondering whether to select Basic or Intermediate First Aid. While the certificates have new names, Regulation 1101 still refers to Emergency and Standard First Aid. This creates a confusing gap between what you see on a training provider’s website and what your workplace safety requirements actually say.

This post is a practical decision aid for that exact moment. We will not explain why you should train your staff or unpack compliance theory. Instead, we will map the new basic first aid training and Intermediate certificates directly back to the Emergency and Standard levels you already know.

You will find a simple table to translate the terminology, a clear explanation of why both sets of names remain correct, and guidance on determining which level your workplace needs under Regulation 1101. We will also cover how to handle off-site staff, verify a provider, and what to do about certificates your team already holds. Finally, we include a ready-to-send note for your staff explaining the change. By the end, you will have the clarity to book the right level this week.

Start Here: The One Table That Maps Basic and Intermediate Back to Emergency and Standard

Employers booking now need one mapping, not a new compliance program. WSIB renamed its First Aid Program certificates to Basic First Aid and Intermediate First Aid effective June 22, 2026, a change the agency describes as in line with CSA Z1210:24. Regulation 1101 has not been rewritten, so its requirement tables still use the older terms.

Check the wording yourself in the WSIB First Aid Requirements (Regulation 1101) document, PDF version 07/2026. WSIB states certificates issued under the new names continue to meet Regulation 1101, so this is a labelling change, not a new requirement.

A search for basic first aid training, emergency first aid, or standard first aid can return pages that look like three courses. They describe two levels. Use the table once in the booking conversation: state the regulation level (Emergency or Standard), confirm the certificate name (Basic or Intermediate) in the same sentence, then stop translating. Repeating the mapping in every email creates the confusion it is meant to settle.

For workplaces whose regulation reading calls for Standard First Aid, Forest City First Aid delivers Intermediate First Aid with CPR-C and AED, the certificate name now issued for that level.

Why Both Sets of Names Are Still Correct After the WSIB First Aid Update

The table settles the lookup, but the reason both vocabularies survive is simpler than the naming change suggests. Both sets of names are correct because they come from two documents. WSIB's First Aid Program issues the certificate, while Regulation 1101 sets the legal requirement. A certificate rename does not rewrite the regulation, so Basic and Intermediate, and Emergency and Standard, all remain accurate in context.

WSIB states that certificates issued under the new names continue to meet Regulation 1101. Employers booking Basic or Intermediate are not booking outside the requirement. Anyone quoting emergency first aid or standard first aid from the regulation is not out of date either, because Regulation 1101 still uses those terms. Treating one set as the "wrong" set creates arguments exactly when a booking decision is due.

For internal notes, attribute the June 22, 2026 effective date to the WSIB First Aid Program update and the WSIB First Aid Requirements document rather than treating it as independently verified. What is changing in Ontario's WSIB First Aid Program? covers the background.

The rename did not change which level a workplace must have, when kits and boxes must be inspected, which accidents and treatments must be recorded, or who counts as an employee. Regulation 1101's scope is unchanged and applies to all employees regardless of employment status.

For search, older queries will not disappear overnight. This is a mapping problem, not a terminology cleanup; plan for both vocabularies to coexist.

Which Level Does Your Workplace Need Under WSIB Regulation 1101 First Aid Requirements?

The certificate name does not decide this; the regulation does. Every business covered by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act follows Regulation 1101, and the level your workplace needs today is unchanged by the rename: Basic replaces Emergency, Intermediate replaces Standard, one to one.

Fix your level by reading the requirement tables in the WSIB First Aid Requirements (Regulation 1101) document, version 07/2026, against your own operations. This page does not restate those tables or assign a level to a workplace type, because a summary cannot reflect how your site actually runs.

The scope catches employers out: requirements apply to all employees regardless of employment status and at all workplaces, including off-site locations. A contractor, a part-timer and a crew at a client site sit inside the same requirement as head office staff.

Two duties survive the rename and slip during busy booking periods: inspect first aid boxes and contents at least quarter-yearly, recording the date and signature on the inspection card, and keep a record of workplace accidents and first aid treatment.

Sequence the work to avoid a wasted booking: read the tables, fix the level in regulation language, confirm the matching certificate name, then book. Booking from a course title and checking the requirement afterwards is where mismatches start. With the level fixed, review the Intermediate course outline.

Revisit the reading when your workplace changes, not when the certificate names change. New shift patterns, a new site or a new class of work can move what you must provide.

Off-Site, Multi-Site and Travelling Staff After the Rename

Regulation 1101 applies to all workplaces, including off-site locations, and to all employees regardless of employment status. A crew at a client site, a team in a rented space, or staff working across several addresses is inside the requirement, not outside it.

Fix the level first, then the location question. The certificate name on the wall does not change what a given site requires, so decide the level from the regulation's requirement tables and then work out where staff and kits need to be. For mobile teams, the practical answer is certification that travels with the worker. Keep a per-worker record of certificate name, issue date and expiry so a site supervisor's question gets answered without a filing search.

When you add a site, reassess rather than assume. A new location is a workplace for the purposes of the regulation, and the rename neither softens nor extends that. Build the booking around how the team actually works: if staff rotate through three sites, schedule training before the rotation starts rather than running separate bookings mid-cycle. The same discipline that supports multi-location rollout, as with mobile respirator fit testing for multi-location employers, applies here.

Event and short-term operations still need a named plan for who holds certification and where first aid supplies sit on the day. That plan is what an inspector or site contact will ask for. With the level fixed and records portable, the next step is confirming your provider.

Confirming WSIB Approved First Aid Training Before You Book

With the level fixed for each site, the remaining check is who is approved to deliver it. Provider approval is part of meeting the requirement, not a discretionary extra: Regulation 1101 contains a section on choosing a WSIB-approved first aid training provider, and WSIB publishes a first aid training provider finder for confirming status. Check the live finder rather than a course title, a website badge or the certificate names a provider advertises.

Then ask every provider one question: which certificate names will the participant receive after June 22, 2026? The answer should be Basic First Aid or Intermediate First Aid, matched to the level your regulation reading called for. Settle the level before comparing providers. Once it is fixed in regulation language and confirmed in WSIB language, choose on scheduling, location and how certification records are issued, not on which course title sounds more thorough.

Forest City First Aid delivers the Intermediate First Aid course, the level Regulation 1101 calls Standard First Aid, along with CPR-C and AED, CPR-HCP and BLS, Airway Management and Naloxone training, plus first aid kit and AED kit servicing, N95 mask fit testing, classroom rental and event first aid services. Service covers London, Toronto and the GTA, with travel across Ontario by arrangement. If your reading points to Basic First Aid, confirm availability and scheduling directly before booking.

Do not let the rename prompt a price-only re-shop. The requirement did not loosen, and a cheaper booking at the wrong level costs a second booking plus the time to redo it.

Certificates Staff Already Hold: What the Rename Does and Does Not Decide

The mapping settles names, not the status of certificates already in hand. Basic First Aid replaces the name Emergency First Aid, and Intermediate First Aid replaces the name Standard First Aid. That is a naming equivalence only. It does not say that Emergency or Standard certificates issued before June 22, 2026 must be reissued, and it does not say they remain valid indefinitely. Neither the WSIB First Aid Program update nor Regulation 1101 answers that transition question on its own, so confirm it directly with WSIB at first_aid@wsib.on.ca.

Make the answer easy to find by building one roster: worker name, certificate name, level, issue date and expiry. A renewal decision then becomes a lookup, not a memory test. Where a certificate is already due, book the level your regulation reading requires and accept the new certificate name. Raise only the not-yet-due renewals with WSIB. Before booking a renewal, review About the Course for recertification details.

Keep the WSIB First Aid Requirements (Regulation 1101) document dated 07/2026 in your file. It shows what you read and when if a client, insurer or inspector asks. Staff who trained years ago will still say Standard, so send them the name table and the WSIB contact in one message. That closes the question in a single pass.

The One-Time Note to Send Your Staff About Basic and Intermediate

Once you have settled what staff already hold, close the naming question for future bookings with a single written note rather than repeated explanations. One short message issued at the point of booking does more than a policy document nobody opens.

The note can read as written:

"Basic First Aid is the certificate name for what Regulation 1101 calls Emergency First Aid. Intermediate First Aid is the certificate name for what Regulation 1101 calls Standard First Aid."

Add one instruction beneath it: do not describe either level as the "old" name or the "real" name. Both are current; one belongs to the regulation and one belongs to the certificate. Framing either as outdated starts avoidable scheduling arguments.

Direct requirement questions to the regulation and WSIB, not to whoever trained most recently. Staff asking which level applies should read the requirement tables with their manager, not compare certificates in a break room.

Attach the note to your training booking process so it is reviewed if WSIB changes the naming again. Keep the WSIB document version reference (07/2026) in the same place so the note can be dated. Keep the note to a couple of sentences; a short mapping staff actually read beats a long explainer that gets skimmed. When booking the level Regulation 1101 calls Standard First Aid, see About the Course for Intermediate First Aid details.

Takeaways for Booking the Right Level This Week

With that note circulating, booking becomes a short checklist.

• Treat the mapping as settled. Basic First Aid is the certificate name for Emergency First Aid; Intermediate First Aid is the certificate name for Standard First Aid. Regulation 1101 still uses the older wording in its own text.

• Fix your level from the requirement tables in the WSIB First Aid Requirements (Regulation 1101) document, version 07/2026. The requirement applies to all employees regardless of employment status and at every workplace, including off-site locations.

• Book the level, not the label. Confirm provider approval through the WSIB provider finder, ask which certificate names participants will receive, and take any question about existing Emergency or Standard certificates to WSIB at first_aid@wsib.on.ca.

• Calendar the recurring duties: inspect first aid boxes and contents at least quarter-yearly, record the date and signature on the inspection card, and keep records of workplace accidents and first aid treatment.

• If your reading points to the level Regulation 1101 calls Standard First Aid, Forest City First Aid delivers Intermediate First Aid plus CPR-C and AED, CPR-HCP and BLS, Airway Management and Naloxone training, with kit servicing, mask fit testing and classroom rental in London, Toronto, the GTA and across Ontario by arrangement. See About the Course. Confirm Basic First Aid availability directly if that is the level you need.

Conclusion

The WSIB rename does not change your obligations, only the vocabulary. Keep these points in view:

• Basic First Aid equals Emergency First Aid, and Intermediate equals Standard First Aid. Regulation 1101 keeps the older wording.

• Determine your required level from the WSIB Regulation 1101 tables, not from the certificate label.

• Book by level and confirm provider approval and certificate names before you commit.

• Stay on top of recurring duties like quarterly kit inspections and accident records.

If your reading points to Standard First Aid, Forest City First Aid delivers Intermediate First Aid plus CPR-C and AED, CPR-HCP and BLS, Airway Management and Naloxone training, with kit servicing, mask fit testing and classroom rental in London, Toronto, the GTA and across Ontario by arrangement. Confirm Basic First Aid availability directly if that is your level.

Book the right level this week, and give your team the confidence that comes with clear, compliant training.