Blog Post #1173 – Mississauga Lumber Company Fined $75,000 After Worker Injury

Excerpt from the government of Ontario’s ‘Newsroom’

At a residential address in Vaughan, Ontario, a worker was critically injured while unloading large beams of lumber from a delivery truck.

Argo Lumber Inc., 7630 Airport Road, Mississauga, Ontario, a supplier of lumber products to construction projects was the employer.

On September 29, 2015, a worker was delivering lumber to a residential address in Vaughan, including two 28-foot-long lumber beams. The bed of the delivery truck was 18 feet long; the 28-foot beams were loaded on top of the truck headboard at an angle on top of other pieces of lumber.  Strapping was used to secure the beams to each other and to the bed of the truck. The two beams weighed approximately 245 pounds in total.

After arrival at the residence the worker climbed onto the truck bed, removed the strapping from the beams and attempted to push them off the side of the truck. While doing so, the worker lost balance and fell from the truck to the driveway below, a fall of approximately 7½ feet. The two beams also fell.

The worker sustained critical injuries from the fall.

Investigation by the Ministry of Labour revealed that the worker had received some training on how to deliver lumber to residential sites and construction projects but had not been given adequate information or instruction on how to safely unload beams longer than 22 feet.  Accordingly, the worker climbed on the truck and unloaded the beams by hand, an unsafe method of unloading.

Following a guilty plea, Argo Lumber Inc. was fined $75,000 by Judge Christine Pirraglia in Newmarket court; Crown Counsel Jai Dhar.

The court also imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.

My opinion

The law(s) in contravention:

Argo Lumber Inc. was found guilty of a contravention of the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA), section 25, subsection 2(a) which states,

“An employer shall,

• provide information, instruction and supervision to a worker to protect the health or safety of the worker.”

Is it too much to ask that the employer properly train their employees to keep them safe? It is too much for the supervisor to be properly trained in all aspects of the work to better guide or instruct the employees about safe work procedures?

Hmm….

Great questions but no answers from Argo Lumber Inc. They should have taken the health and safety of their workers seriously.

HRS Group Inc. has a great team that can help you with all your health and safety need including ‘Material Handling’, ‘Due Diligence’ and ‘Proper Lifting Techniques’. Contact Deborah toll free at 1-877-907-7744 or locally at 705-749-1259.

We can also be reached at 

Ensure your workplace is a safe place.

Remember – In Ontario, “ALL Accidents are Preventable”

‘Work’ and ‘Play’ safe.

Daniel L. Beal

CHSEP – Advanced Level
VP & Senior Trainer
HRS Group Inc.