Court Decides $80,000 Fine Is Appropriate for Conveyor Incident

A warehouse worker was injured when her hair got entangled in an unguarded drive shaft underneath a conveyor. As a result, the employer was convicted of an OHS violation. At sentencing, the court noted that the employer did have numerous safety measures in place and a general concern for safety. But as to the conveyors, the employer should’ve known that the unguarded drive shaft posed a hazard. And this lack of foresight took place over several years. The employer did show remorse and immediately took steps afterwards to address the hazard. Thus, the court concluded that an $80,000 fine was appropriate [R. v. Value Drug Mart Associates Ltd., [2014] ABPC 255 (CanLII), Nov. 12, 2014].