Excerpt from the government of Ontario’s ‘Newsroom’
A worker, employed by Green Belting Industries Limited of Mississauga, Ontario, was injured when a roll of paper slid from a lifting device that should not have been used for the task.
On February 6, 2019 a worker was tasked with moving paper or glass rolls in the area of production equipment while using a stacker. The stacker is a small walk-behind lifting device with the ability to lift and carry relatively low weight loads.
In addition to being placed on small racks at the production equipment, rolls used in the work were also stored on a racking structure located at the workplace. The rolls are transported and stored using a lift truck (also known as a forklift), or a reach truck, or the stacker.
When moving or removing rolls from the racking structure, workers were expected to use a forklift or reach truck; both devices are designed for lifting heavier loads.
At some point during the day, the worker retrieved a paper roll from the racking structure. The worker determined the forklift was not available to be used, and the worker was not a trained forklift operator. Instead, the worker used the stacker for the task.
The stacker was not a lifting device designed to complete this task nor was it the worker’s role to move rolls from the rack with the stacker. The stacker is stabilized by two legs called stabilizing outrigger arms. The lifting forks on the device are controlled by a control handle at the back of the stacker. Operators stand behind the machine and operate the lifting forks using the control handle.
The racking structure is made of steel tubing. At the bottom of the structure are two hollow rectangular steel tubes that are welded to the structure. The hollow steel tubes serve as pick-up points so the racking system can be transported with a lift truck.
The steel tubes obstructed the stabilizing outrigger arms of the stacker. This prevented the stacker from being positioned in a perpendicular and centered position relative to the rolls being stored on the racking structure. Due to this obstruction, in order to retrieve a roll, the worker had to bring the forks of the stacker in on an angle.
After positioning the forks under one of the paper rolls, the worker lifted the paper roll and backed up the stacker. Due to the imbalance, caused by the roll not being centred on the forks of the stacker, the roll started to overturn/tip to the right. When this occurred, the worker tried to push the roll back on the forks of the stacker. Despite this attempt the roll, which weighed 823 pounds, fell off the forks and struck the worker, who received critical injuries.
Following a guilty plea, Green Belting Industries Ltd. was fined $60,000 in provincial offences court in Mississauga by Justice of the Peace Veruschka Fisher-Grant; Crown Counsel Alicia Gordon-Fagan.
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:
Green Belting industries Ltd. was found guilty of a contravention of the Ontario ‘Industrial’ regulation 851/90, section 45, subsection (b) which states,
Material, articles or things,
(b) shall be transported, placed or stored so that the material, articles or things,
(i) will not tip, collapse or fall, and
(ii) can be removed or withdrawn without endangering the safety of any worker.”
This is contrary to section 25(1)(c) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) which states,
“An employer shall ensure that,
(c) the measures and procedures prescribed are carried out in the workplace.”
A trained forklift operator would have realized that the stacker was not enough to lift and move heavy objects. A trained operator would have refused such an unsafe lift! Too bad the employee was not trained.
HRS Group Inc. has a great team that can help you with all your health and safety needs including ‘Forklift Certification’ and ‘Forklift Re-Certification’. Contact Deborah toll free at 1-877-907-7744 or locally at 705-749-1259.
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.
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