“This government will continue working with industry, labour and safety associations to ensure our workplaces remain healthy and safe,” said Hector Goudreau, Minister of Employment and Immigration. “However, when all else fails and the law is broken, the courts take over and send the ultimate message. These sentences should remind employers that there will be consequences when they don’t meet their safety responsibilities.”
The percentage of penalties collected as alternate sentences has also increased. In 2007, 74 per cent of penalties were paid to safety organizations to provide training or to organizations that assist injured workers. To date in 2008, more than 88 per cent of the fines, nearly $4.5 million, are in alternate sentences with the largest awards going to the University of Alberta Engineering Safety and Risk Management Program ($345,000), Lakeland College ($300,000) and the Red Deer College/City of Red Deer ($300,000).
2008 OH&S Convictions
|
Date
of 2008 Conviction |
Company |
Incident
location/date |
Creative
sentence |
Recipient |
Total
Penalty |
|
January
17 |
Fitzgerald
Construction 2001 Inc. |
Wainwright |
$288,500 |
Workers’
Health Centre |
$300,000 |
|
January
21 |
E&L
Trucking |
Grande
Cache, August 25, 2004 |
$70,000 |
Easter
Seals |
$75,000 |
|
January
22 |
DSI
Mill Construction Ltd. |
Mitsue |
$345,000 |
Engineering
Safety and Risk Management Program - U of A Faculty of Engineering |
$350,750 |
|
February
7 |
K.
Kenn Industries Ltd. |
Wainwright |
$300,000 |
Lakeland
College |
$357,500 |
|
February
14 |
Twin
Rivers Ranch Ltd. |
Vega |
$245,000 |
STARS,
NAIT, Glenrose Rehabilitation Centre |
$250,000 |
|
March
6 |
Cassady
Engineering Ltd. |
Nisku |
$269,250 |
Manufacturer’s
Health and Safety Association, STARS |
$275,000 |
|
March
19 |
CVA
Canada Inc. |
Red
Deer |
$300,000 |
Red
Deer College and City of Red Deer Emergency Services |
$300,000
|
|
April
23 |
NB
Tree Services Ltd. |
Canmore,
|
$70,000 |
Olds
College |
$75,750 |
|
April
23 |
Lonkar
Well Testing Ltd. |
Grande
Prairie, January 13, 2005 |
$295,000 |
STARS
Air Ambulance |
$300,000 |
|
April
25 |
United
Rentals of Canada Inc. |
Ft.
McMurray |
$120,000 |
Alberta
Construction Safety Association |
$125,000 |
|
April
30 |
Premetalco
Inc. |
Calgary
|
$315,000 |
SAIT
($265K) |
$325,000 |
|
June
16 |
L.O.P.
Inc |
Edmonton
|
|
|
$316,250 |
|
June
17 |
Canadian
Horizontal Drilling Ltd. |
Wetaskiwin |
$290,000 |
Northern
Alberta Brain Injury Society |
$301,500 |
|
July
7 |
B.
Little Construction Ltd. |
Drayton
Valley |
$295,000 |
STARS
Air Ambulance |
$300,000 |
|
August
22 |
Independent
Automatic Sprinkler Ltd. |
Grande
Prairie |
|
|
$100,000 |
|
September
4 |
Special
Services Inc. |
Sundre,
|
$419,250 |
NAIT,
Red Deer College, STARS, Threads of Life |
$425,000 |
|
September
15 |
Atco
Electric Ltd. |
Peace
River, |
$297,000 |
Produce
“Best Practice for Working on Ice” |
$300,375 |
|
September
30 |
Skyline
Drywall Ltd. |
Calgary,
|
$70,000 |
SAIT
Polytechnic |
$72,875 |
|
October
6 |
Pagnotta
Industries Ltd. |
Jasper, |
$80,000 |
NAIT |
$85,750 |
|
September
19 |
Blue
Ridge Lumber Inc. |
Whitecourt,
December 14, 2002 |
$40,000 |
Blue
Ridge Voluntary Fire Department |
$45,750 |
|
December
15 |
Browne
and Sons Plastering Ltd |
Wainwright
|
$85,000 |
STARS |
$90,000 |
|
December
22 |
W.
Pidhirney Welding Ltd. |
Grande
Cache August 21, 2005 |
$290,000 |
Red
Deer College |
$301,500 |
|
Totals to date |
$4,484,000 |
|
$5,073,000 |
||
