Worker fell from platform 29 inches above the work floor
Ontario employer Richvale York Block Inc. – a manufacturer of concrete blocks for the construction industry – has been fined $50,000 after one of its workers suffered a critical injury in the workplace.
Following a guilty plea in Provincial Offences Court, London, the employer was also tasked to pay a 25 per cent 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 happened on Jan. 27, 2023 at 1298 Clarke Road, London, Ontario N5V 3B5. The company employs approximately 19 people at the facility.
On the day of the incident, a worker was on the production floor of the facility, bagging and shrink-wrapping manufactured concrete blocks that were to be taken to a storage area.
In performing these duties, the worker stood on a platform approximately 29 inches above the work floor.
While using a heat gun to apply shrink-wrapping to a difficult to reach section of a concrete block, the worker stepped backwards and fell from the platform. This resulted in a critical injury.
“Richvale York Block Inc. failed to ensure there was a guardrail at the open side of a raised platform on which a worker stood, as prescribed by section 13(1)(b)(i) of the Regulation for Industrial Establishments. This is contrary to section 25(1)(c) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, and an offence pursuant to subsection 66(1) of the Act,” said the Ontario government.
