Government of Alberta | A steel construction and fabrication company has been penalised $90,000 related to a serious workplace injury incident.

Steele Tech Fabrication Inc., as an employer, pleaded guilty in the Barrhead Court of Justice to one count under the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act for failing to ensure the health and safety of a worker. The Crown withdrew four other counts.

Under a creative sentence, the company was ordered to pay $90,000 to the Barrhead Composite High School to purchase equipment for the school’s shop and welding/fabrication labs to increase student and teacher safety and provide students with high quality, modern training. The company was also placed on 18 months of enhanced regulatory supervision.

The charges stem from an incident that occurred at a steel fabrication shop near Barrhead on 17 March 2022.

Workers were moving a steel I-beam out of the shop with a telehandler forklift. The I-beam fell off the forks and struck a worker, who was walking beside the I-beam to guide it. The worker sustained serious injuries.

The OHS Act provides a creative sentence option in which funds that would otherwise be paid as fines are directed to an organisation or project to improve or promote workplace health and safety. The company and the Crown have up to 30 days to appeal the conviction or penalties.

Canadian Occupational Safety| Alberta oilfield services company Terroco Industries has been fined nearly $450,000 for the unsafe storage and illegal disposal of industrial sewage.

The Red Deer-based company was penalised by the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) following a series of infractions at its Stettler, Alta., disposal site dating back to the summer of 2023.

The AER investigation found that Terroco Industries unlawfully accepted and stored 14,196 cubic metres of industrial sewage over a 40-day period. The waste, which originated from an agricultural-based industrial facility, was not approved under the company’s licence and its disposal by deep well injection is strictly prohibited under Alberta law.

The regulator identified five key contraventions, including accepting unapproved waste, operating an above-ground storage tank without secondary containment, leak detection, or spill control, and using a tank foundation that was improperly designed and at risk of collapse. Testing also confirmed the presence of polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or “forever chemicals,” in the wastewater, which are known to pose long-term environmental and health risks.

The AER stated that accepting unapproved waste undermines regulatory oversight and increases the risk of adverse effects to both the environment and human health.

Of the $448,980 total penalty, $298,980 was attributed to illegally generating revenue from the storage of unauthorised waste. The fine was increased due to what the regulator described as “wilful negligence” and a failure to comply with previous warnings.

Canadian Occupational Safety | British Columbia employer Canfor Pulp Ltd. has been fined $489,104.10 after one of its workers was injured on the job.

WorkSafeBC attended the company’s worksite in response to an incident in which a worker was injured when an unguarded cylinder activated on a hydraulic pumping system (atmospheric diffuser).

The agency determined that the employer failed to ensure its machinery and equipment were fitted with adequate safeguards to protect workers from hazardous points of operation. This was classified as a high-risk violation.

According to the CCOHS Welding – Storage and Handling of Compressed Gas Cylinders fact sheet, employers must ensure the following measures are in place when compressed gases are used or stored:

  • Develop and implement a Safe Operating Procedure (SOP). This procedure must be created by a safety technical specialist and clearly define what constitutes a cylinder being “in storage” versus “in use”.
  • Provide required worker training, including WHMIS.
  • Maintain an accurate, up-to-date cylinder inventory.
  • Control maximum quantities of gases on site in accordance with legislative limits.
  • Avoid storing fuel gas cylinders in cabinets, whether enclosed or vented. If security is a concern, use a screened cage with at least two sides 80% or more open to ensure airflow.
  • Monitor storage area gas levels, particularly for flammable gases and oxygen.
  • Adhere to firewall specifications and separation distances between incompatible gases, as required by local regulations.
  • Secure compressed gas containers and systems against physical damage and tampering.
  • Select appropriate outdoor storage locations. Use a well-drained, non-combustible platform (e.g., concrete), avoid hydrocarbon-based asphalt for oxidizers, and avoid exposure to humidity.
  • Site storage areas away from vegetated zones. Maintain a clear area, commonly a minimum of six metres, from forest or brush, in line with local requirements.
  • Ensure indoor storage rooms meet code requirements, including building, electrical, and fire codes.
  • Display “No Smoking” signs in both indoor and outdoor storage areas.
  • Set and post maximum storage temperatures:
    • In use – less than 48.9 °C (120 °F).
    • General storage – less than 51.7 °C (125 °F).
  • Consider separate securing for each cylinder to prevent falling or toppling when neighbouring cylinders are removed.

Kelowna Capital News | WorkSafeBC has issued a fine to Axis Family Resources for what it said was deemed a “high risk” violation at a worksite in Williams Lake.

WorkSafeBC states the fine was issued for the amount of $467,496.80 in relation to asbestos at a residential social services facility.

It inspected the worksite to review the implementation of their exposure control plan after facility walls with identified asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) had been damaged and needed repairs.

WorkSafeBC said they issued a stop-work order as a result of what they found during their site visit.

As the owner of the building, the firm failed to ensure the asbestos abatement contractor held a valid licence and that all ACMs present in the workplace were identified with signs or labels, and the organisation failed to ensure the health and safety of workers at the site.

WorkSafeBC said these were repeated violations, and the firm failed to take the necessary precautions to protect workers before work to potentially disturb the ACMs went ahead.

According to WorkSafeBC, asbestos exposure is the number one killer of workers in the province and contributed to 32 work-related deaths in 2024.

WorkSafeBC requires mandatory training and licensing for asbestos abatement work.

CFJC Today | The Interior Health Authority has been hit with a nearly $800,000 penalty after WorkSafe BC found asbestos had been disturbed at a long-term care facility in Kamloops. The specific facility was not named by WorkSafe.

In its summary of the $783,068.26 penalty, WorkSafeBC says it had inspected the long-term care facility after hearing reports of asbestos-containing materials that had been disturbed. Installation work had taken place for telecommunications equipment, and a wall near an area used by staff had been drilled into, which had been identified as containing asbestos.

The penalty summary states WorkSafeBC found Interior Health (IH) failed to make sure people who had received reports of unsafe conditions investigated the situation and took corrective action without delay. This was found to be a repeated violation.

WorkSafeBC says IH also didn’t make sure that a qualified risk assessment was done before the work began. The health authority was also penalized for not implementing an adequate exposure control plan for controlling and handling asbestos.

The reasons for the expensive fine were all considered to be “high-risk violations,” according to WorkSafeBC’s summary.

Canadian Occupational Safety | Ontario-based Sofina Foods Inc has been fined $330,000 following the death of one of its workers in a workplace incident.

The incident occurred on 2 March 2023, when 32-year-old Samir Subedi, an Edmonton-based worker, went to check the temperature of a gas-fired smokehouse. The smokehouse had been loaded with meat the previous night, according to a report from The Canadian Press (CP).

Subedi, a superintendent at the workplace, became trapped inside the smokehouse.

It was reported that the smokehouse’s emergency handle, designed to open the door from the inside, was broken. In its place was a door stopper that had not been approved by the company’s engineering team.

A temperature probe in the smokehouse registered a reading of 92°C. A co-worker later found Subedi unconscious inside the smokehouse.

Sofina Foods pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the safety of the worker in Edmonton.

The company has also already paid $500,000 to Subedi’s family, before tax deductions, to help cover the mortgage on their home, according to reports.

Prosecutor Hendrik Kruger told the sentencing hearing that while the company had a comprehensive safety system in place, it failed to monitor compliance and provide proper training regarding the door mechanism.

The prosecutor also asked for 25 other charges against the company to be withdrawn.

Sofina Foods fully cooperated with the Occupational Health and Safety investigation and has since increased staffing in its engineering and health and safety departments following Subedi’s death, according to the report.

Canadian Occupational Safety | Ontario employer Alugard Ltd has been fined $100,000 after one of its workers was injured in the workplace.

Following a guilty plea in the Provincial Offences Court in Mississauga, the employer was also ordered to pay a 25% victim fine surcharge as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.

The incident occurred on 3 October 2022, in Mississauga. On that day, a worker was troubleshooting a malfunctioning pro-line door jamb processing centre, which is used to fabricate aluminium into window jambs.

The machine was in automatic mode with its safety disabled and moving parts unblocked.

To fix the problem, the worker leaned into the cutting area of the machine and used compressed air to clear debris. This removed an obstruction from a sensor, triggering the machine to activate.

However, the machine’s carriage suddenly started to move, injuring the worker.

A Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development investigation found that the employer failed to ensure proper lockout and blocking procedures were followed during maintenance. The employer also tampered with the machine’s safety device after the incident and failed to comply with ministry orders to submit a written notice of the incident, according to the Ontario government.

Ontario Newsroom | A worker was critically injured after Linamar Corporation failed to follow prescribed safety measures under section 45(a) of Ontario Regulation 851/90 and section 25(1)(c) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.

An acting supervisor directed a worker to change a broach stick using a jib crane; the 460-lb stick fell and struck him, causing a critical injury.

Labour Ministry investigators found the crane’s clamp was not fully engaged, compromising safe handling.

Linamar pleaded guilty in Provincial Offences Court and was fined $350,000 plus a 25 % victim surcharge.

Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development | Janco Steel Ltd. was fined $200,000 after a worker was fatally struck by a forklift in April 2022.

A worker offloading a steel coil walked into the path of a moving forklift and was killed. The Ministry found the company failed to use a signaller when the operator’s view was obstructed.

Janco pleaded guilty in Hamilton’s Provincial Offences Court and paid the fine plus a 25 % victim surcharge.

Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety | Evraz Inc. NA Canada pleaded guilty in Regina Provincial Court to violating The Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, 2020.

The court fined the company $410,714.29 plus a $164,285.71 surcharge, totalling $575,000. One other charge was withdrawn.

The charges stemmed from a 4 December 2022 incident in Regina, Saskatchewan, when a worker suffered serious injuries inspecting sheet metal moving through a slitting machine.

Consolidated Login

Comprehensive Login