Worker & Company Convicted and Fined for Unsafe Operation of Equipment

An excavation company’s worker operated an excavator in an unsafe manner while removing asphalt from a parking lot that was being repaved. No one was injured. The company was charged with three OHS violations for failing to: protect those not in its employ, ensure that there was protection from flying fragments and ensure that a worker wasn’t within range of the swinging movement of mobile equipment. The court convicted if of two of the three charges and fined it $6,000. The worker, who had both operator and supervisory duties, was also convicted of two safety offences and fined $2,000 [Farrell’s Excavating Ltd., Govt. News Release, Dec. 18, 2012].