OHS Fines Scorecard for 2024 (July 16 to August 13)

Mid-July to mid-August was the highest-volume 4-week period for big OHS fines of 2024, with 14 fines of $25,000 or more reported across Canada. There were also 6 reported 6-figure fines, tied for the second most of any 4-week period, including the highest OHS fine of the year. Result: Of the 80 fines reported during the entire year to date, 30 of those fines, or 37.5%, have been in the 6-figure range.

Table 1. OHS Fines in 2024 At A Glance (through August 13)

Period Total Reported Fines Reported 6-Figure Fines
Jan to mid-Feb 11 6
Mid-Feb to mid-March 11 4
Mid-March to mid-April 10 2
Mid-April to mid-May 12 9
Mid-May to mid-June 12 5
Mid-June to mid-July 10 4
Mid-July to mid-August 14 6
Total 80 36

Source: Bongarde

6-Figure OHS Fines

BC reported the largest OHS fine of not just the period but also the year–$783,000 against a metals company for a fatal fall of a worker from an elevated platform while inspecting an overhead crane while it was still moving. The second and third largest fines of the period also came from BC, including administrative monetary penalties of $316,000 against a manufacturing plant for failing to implement proper procedures for group lockout and $249,000 against a prime contractor for fall protection violations resulting in a worker’s death. Ontario, Northwest Territories, and Saskatchewan accounted for other 6-figure fines in the most recent period.

Table 2. Top 5 OHS Fines of 2024 At A Glance (through August 13)

Fine Amount Province Type of Company/Incident
1 $783,068 British Columbia Smelting facility/Fatal fall during overhead crane inspection
2 $710,488 British Columbia Shipyard/Confined space asphyxiation
3 $600,000 Ontario Truck manufacturer/Explosion during handling of flammables resulting in 6 fatalities
4 $420,000 Alberta Contractor/Powered mobile equipment fatality
5 $391,534 British Columbia Lumber company/Repeat violations not connected to a specific incident

Source: Bongarde

Although Ontario has handed out the most 6-figure fines of any province in 2024 with 12, only one of the 8 biggest fines of the year has come from that province. Alberta has accounted for 10 6-figure fines, including 1 of the top 5. While BC is only in third place for 6-figure fine volume with 8, those fines include 3 of the top 5, including the first and second spots. Saskatchewan has handed down 3 OHS fines in the 6-figures, including one during the most recent period. Northwest Territories and New Brunswick are the only other jurisdictions that have reported 6-figure OHS fines in 2024, with 1 apiece.

Overall OHS Fines

As usual, Ontario reported the most OHS fines during the period with 5, including separate fines against the same company for different incidents involving material handling operations. BC and Saskatchewan reported 3 fines apiece. The other reported OHS fines came from Manitoba, Northwest Territories, and Yukon. The latter was an $80,000 sentence handed down by a Yukon judge against a company and its corporate director for OHS violations stemming from the death of a driller. For the first time this year, there were no significant OHS fines reported in Alberta during the period.

Table 3. OHS Fines Reported from July 16, to August 13, 2024* (over $20,000)

Jurisdiction Fine Company What Happened Violation(s)
BC $783,068 Rio Tinto Alcan Inc. Fatal fall from elevated platform at smelting facility during inspection of overhead crane while it’s in motion. Restoring the crane to use before it was certified as safe, not de-energizing at least part of the crane while it was being serviced, and other high-risk violations.
BC $316,061 Louisiana-Pacific Canada Ltd./Dawson Creek OSB Division WorkSafeBC inspectors spot problems with manufacturing plant’s lockout procedures. Failure to ensure that 2 qualified workers were responsible for locking out the energy isolating devices independently during a group lockout procedure.
BC $249,216 Beedie Construction Ltd. Subcontractor’s worker performing roof work at a 3-storey commercial warehouse project falls and suffers fatal injuries. Failure, as prime contractor, to ensure that an effective fall protection system was in place, a high-risk violation.
ON $240,000 National Steel Car Limited Worker performing welding killed when chain securing bulkhead panel to overhead crane breaks, causing panel to fall on top of him. Failure to ensure that the panel was secured against tipping or falling.
NWT $200,000 SMS Equipment Ltd. Worker inspecting the hydraulics on a haul truck boarding is pinned by moving parts, resulting in fatal injury Failure to maintain establishment in such a manner that the health and safety of persons are not likely to be endangered.
SK $150,000 Village of Laird Worker suffers serious injuries after being ejected from the seat of a mower and getting trapped under the machine. *Failure to ensure the worker was competently supervised.
*Failure to detect and repair an unsafe condition in the equipment.
SK $95,000 HVR Construction Ltd. Truss collapse at a construction site causes serious injuries to 2 workers. 2 counts of failing to provide and maintain a safe plant, system of work, and working environment.
YK $80,000 Saffa Engineering Incorporated + Corporate president Driller is killed while conducting geotechnical drilling on highway roadbeds. 3 counts of failing to ensure that the drill was properly guarded and safe to use.
ON $70,000 BNE Concrete Floors & Coatings Inc. Worker operating a polishing machine in an unventilated room suffers severe injuries from carbon monoxide poisoning. *Failure to prevent operation of internal combustion engine in an excavation or in a building or other enclosed structure without an adequate supply of air.
*Failure to immediately notify MOL of critical injury.
ON $70,000 MTCA Inc. Worker driving a forklift without proper wet work tires down an aisle on a wet floor loses control and collides with another worker, causing serious injuries. Failure to keep the floor clear of hazards.
SK $65,000 Bourgault Industries Ltd. o/a Highline Manufacturing Ltd. Worker is seriously injured while flushing highly flammable solvent through an electrostatic paint gun. Failure to provide and maintain a safe plant, system of work, and working environment.
ON $65,000 South Essex Fabricating Inc. Worker performing pipe repairs in a trench suffers serious injuries when the trench collapses. Failure to ensure the walls of a trench were properly shored.
ON $50,000 National Steel Car Limited Worker moving scrap metal with a gantry crane is critically injured when a piece of metal falls from the crane’s magnet. Failure to ensure the magnet was thoroughly examined by a competent person to determine its capability of handling the maximum load as rated.
MB $25,000 K-Tec Earthmovers Inc. Worker fractures neck and back after getting crushed by the tire of a heavy-duty earth-moving scraper that tipped over while being loaded. Failure to implement work procedures to perform the operation safely.

* BC OHS fines get reported a month late but are included in the most recent period to ensure continuity and consistency for comparison purposes across all provinces.

Source: Bongarde