Four fines issued after unprotected worker falls to his death from B.C. bridge
FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Two companies and two supervisors have been fined in provincial court in Fort St. John, B.C., after a worker fell to his death from a bridge under construction in March 2019.
A release from WorkSafeBC, the provincial worker safety agency, says when the man fell off a bridge under construction in northeastern B.C., he had no fall-protection equipment and there were no guardrails to prevent his fall.
WorkSafe says Brian Baker, Randolph Kosick, Yoho Resources and Great Northern Bridgeworks previously pleaded guilty to charges under the Workers Compensation Act and the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation.
Court documents show Yoho Resources, the main contractor, and Great Northern Bridgeworks, the victim's employer, have each been fined $70,000, plus a 15 per cent victim fine surcharge.
Bridge foreman Randolph Kosick has been fined $8,500, Yoho's site supervisor Brian Baker is fined $7,500, plus victim fine surcharges, and they and company representatives must attend court-ordered health and safety courses.
Al Johnson, head of prevention services for WorkSafe, says the guilty pleas and sentences show there are "serious enforcement consequences" when employers don't live up to their obligations to keep workers safe.
The WorkSafe release did not identify the victim.
WorkSafe investigates occupational health and safety matters and says its probes may become prosecution investigations when "actions taken to ensure worker safety fall significantly below the standard of due diligence."
"Every worker has the right to go home healthy and safe at the end of the day,” Johnson says in the statement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2021.
The Canadian Press
Criminal liability for workplace deaths and injuries ...
2019-08-19 · Commonly referred to as the Westray Law, former Bill C-45, An Act to amend the Criminal Code (criminal liability of organizations), came into force on March 31, 2004. It modernized the criminal law’s approach for establishing the criminal liability of corporations for workplace deaths and injuries.
Westray Bill (Bill C-45) - Overview : OSH Answers
2021-10-23 · The Westray bill or Bill C-45 was federal legislation that amended the Canadian Criminal Code and became law on March 31, 2004. The Bill (introduced in 2003) established new legal duties for workplace health and safety, and imposed serious penalties for violations that result in injuries or death. The Bill provided new rules for attributing criminal liability to organizations, including corporations, …
Remember Westray. Enforce the law.
On May 9, 1992, an explosion at the Westray Mine in Pictou County, Nova Scotia killed 26 miners working underground. It was one of the deadliest mining disasters in Canadian history and led to new Criminal Code provisions – known as the Westray Law
No comments:
Post a Comment