Worker Fired for Safety Infraction Gets Nearly $60,000 in Damages

After a near miss involving other workers, the employer warned all staff that violating safety rules would lead to termination. Afterwards, a 23-year employee reached through a safety curtain on the assembly line to adjust a bottle when the equipment activated, cutting two of his fingers. The employer fired him; he claimed wrongful dismissal. The court noted that there was no evidence of the type of safety training given at the plant. Nonetheless, the employer seemed to take safety seriously. But termination of the worker based on this safety incident was too strong of a response and not proportionate. So the court ordered the employer to pay him almost $60,000 in damages [Capson v. Amcor Packaging Canada Inc., [2013] N.B.J. No. 172, June 24, 2013].