NEWS RELEASE
ONTARIO MINISTRY OF LABOUR, IMMIGRATION, TRAINING AND SKILLS DEVELOPMENT
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Convicted: Steed and Evans Ltd., 3000 Ament Line, St. Jacobs, Ontario, a civil infrastructure and material supply company.
Location of Workplace: A construction project at Elliott Avenue and Harpin Way in Fergus, Ontario.
Description of Offence: A worker was critically injured after being struck by a vehicle while performing sewer chamber work on a roadway. By failing to position adequate warning signs or barriers to protect the worker, Steed and Evans Ltd. failed to ensure that the measures and procedures as prescribed by section 67(4) of Ontario Regulation 213/91 were carried out at the workplace, contrary to section 25(1)(c) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
Date of Offence: June 10, 2022
Date of Conviction: Nov. 15, 2024
Penalty Imposed:
- Following a guilty plea in the Provincial Offences Court in Guelph, Steed and Evans Ltd. was fined $70,000 by Justice of the Peace Michael Cuthbertson; Crown Counsel was Katie Krafchick.
- 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.
Background:
- On June 10, 2022, a worker was parging previously installed sewer chambers in the middle of a roadway. This involved reaching into the sewer chamber and applying a coat of mixed cement to the inside collar of the chamber to fill in gaps and cracks.
- As the worker performed this task on the ground beside the sewer chamber, another worker drove through the area and struck the first worker, causing critical injuries.
- At the time of the incident, the worker on the ground was wearing a high visibility vest and was performing the task alone. There were no traffic control measures in place around the worker, or any barriers or warning signs around the workspace.
- The road where the work was taking place was an unassumed road and was not open to public traffic, but it was still accessible to vehicular traffic and was regularly used for construction vehicles and equipment.
- A Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development investigation determined that Steed and Evans Ltd. failed to position adequate warning signs or barriers to protect a worker performing work on a roadway.
- Steed and Evans Ltd. failed to ensure that the measures and procedures as prescribed by section 67(4) of Ontario Regulation 213/91 were carried out at the workplace, contrary to section 25(1)(c) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
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