The 8 Biggest OHS Fines in BC in 2020

BC continues to hand out the highest OHS penalties of any province.

BC continues to hand out more and higher fines and administrative monetary penalties for OHS violations than any other province. WorkSafeBC hasn’t yet reported the fines for October, November and December. But the current list covering the first 9 months of 2020 is formidable nonetheless.

Here are the Top 8:

  1. $662,102 against Peace River Hydro Partners Construction Ltd. for multiple high-risk offences cited by WorkSafeBC over a series of OHS inspections.
  2. $646,302 against British Columbia Ferry Services Inc. for high-risk violations stemming from a botched emergency rescue operation resulting in injuries to 3 workers.
  3. $637,415 against the Metro Vancouver Regional District for numerous high-risk offences in connection with the installation of siphon gates inside a sewer line, a confined space.
  4. $540,261 against Choices Markets Ltd. & Buy-Low Foods Ltd. and other for asbestos violations and subsequent failure to take the measures WorkSafeBC required to correct them.
  5. $366,906 against Saputo Foods Limited & 8504865 Canada Inc./Dairyland Fluid Division, which also received a stop-work order for removing pipe insulation material from a dairy production facility machine room without protecting against exposure to asbestos-containing materials.
  6. $327,505 against the City of Fort St. John for numerous chlorine violations at a public swimming pool facility resulting in a chlorine exposure incident.
  7. $289,562 against film production company TCF Vancouver Productions Ltd. that WorkSafeBC uncovered while investigating a stuntman’s fatality that occurred during shooting of a high speed motorcycle chase scene.
  8. $280,296 against Richmond Plywood Corporation Limited for violations resulting in the death of a plywood mill worker who got hit by moving part of wood chipper after removing an access panel to put out a fire in the building.