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POP QUIZ
How many 6-figure OHS fines did Alberta dish out to employers in 2017′
A. 0
B. 3
C. 12
D. 22
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ANSWER: C
OHS fines of $100,000 or more used to be a relative rarity happening maybe once or twice a year. Not
any more. Prosecutions are becoming more frequent and fines higher. Alberta is a representative
example of what’s taking place across Canada. Here’s the catalog of the12 reported 6-figure fines from
2017. Also keep in mind that penalties for OHS violations include not only fines but administrative
monetary penalties and stop work and stop use orders.
| FINE | DATE (2017) | VIOLATOR | VIOLATION(S) |
| $488,750 + 2 years’ corporate probation | Nov. 1 | Sahib Contracting Inc. | Failure, as employer, to protect worker killed in sewer trench collapse at residential construction site |
| $402,500 | Feb. 23 | Marra Concrete Ltd. | 5 counts stemming from fatal carbon monoxide poisoning of worker during basement renovation |
| $345,000 | Oct. 27 | Bird Construction Co. | Failure to ensure use of fall protection system after worker working alone falls into holding tank and drowns |
| $285,000 | Apr. 24 | Suncor Energy Inc. | Failure to protect upgrade supervisor found dead at bottom of 10-foot-deep hole near road at tailing sands dump |
| $250,000 | Apr. 21 | Arion Construction Ltd. | Failure to provide machine guards after 15-year-old worker contacted a moving conveyor belt of a gravel crusher and was crushed to death |
| $175,000 + 16 months’ corporate probation | May 31 | Contour Earthmoving Ltd. | Failure to protect worker killed by a falling Caterpillar cab which wasn’t secured to the forklift being used to move it |
| $161,250 + 2 years’ corporate probation | Nov. 1 | Haya Homes Ltd. | Failure, as prime contractor, to protect worker killed in sewer trench collapse at residential construction site (same incident as Sahib Contracting case listed above) |
| $132,250 | Apr. 20 | Rock Hard Excavating Ltd. | Failure to protect worker who suffers serious burns in underground sewage system manhole welding incident |
| $115,000 + 18 months’ corporate probation | Dec. 4 | Northface Mechanical Ltd. | Failure to protect worker killed in apparent ladder fall while servicing HVAC equipment on a roof |
| $115,000 | Apr. 21 | 1233025 Alberta Ltd. trading as Great North Roofing | Failure to ensure use of fall protection system after roofer is hospitalized in 7.9 metre fall |
| $100,000 | Dec. 8 | River Valley Crushing Ltd. | Failure to ensure proper de-energization of machinery during servicing after worker in rock washer fixing auger suffers serious injuries when system activates |
| $100,000 | Apr. 28 | Brayford Trucking Ltd. | Two counts stemming from death of worker when track hoe excavator he’s operating broke through the ice and sank into water below |
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