Released on December 7, 2016
Two companies pleaded guilty to contravening clause 137(1)(a) of the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Regulations (being an employer, failure to provide an effective safeguard where a worker may contact a dangerous moving part of a machine, resulting in a serious injury to a worker). The incidents were unrelated.
Rest-Well Mattress Company Ltd. pleaded guilty in Regina Provincial Court on December 1, 2016. The Langley, British Columbia company was fined $28,575 plus a $11,430 surcharge, for a total of $40,005. Two additional charges were stayed. Charges were laid after an incident in June 2015. A worker sustained injuries when his head was pinched in the machine table he was repairing.
The other company, The Prince Albert Co-operative Association Limited, pleaded guilty in Big River Provincial Court on December 5, 2016, and was fined $35,715 plus a $14,286 surcharge for a total fine of $50,001. Two additional charges were stayed. Charges were laid after an incident on May 29, 2015, when a worker’s left hand came into contact with the blade of a table saw while he was working.
For more information about OHS prosecutions and how to keep employees safe at work, please visit www.saskatchewan.ca/business/safety-in-the-workplace.
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For more information, contact:
Jen Veri
Labour Relations and Workplace Safety
Regina
Phone: 306-787-1331
Email: jennifer.veri@gov.sk.ca