BURLINGTON, Ont. - Stelumar Advanced Manufacturing (Milton) Inc., a Milton house assembler, was fined $65,000 on July 20, 2009, for violations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) after a worker was seriously injured.

On September 24, 2008, a worker was using a crane to lift a finished roof onto a house in Stelumar's factory.  The roof did not fit properly.  The crane operator entered the house and climbed a ladder to the second floor to work on the suspended roof.  The worker fell about four metres through staircase openings to the factory floor below, was knocked unconscious and suffered injuries to the chest and arm.

A Ministry of Labour investigation found that no guardrails were installed around the stairwell openings.

Stelumar Advanced Manufacturing (Milton) Inc. pleaded guilty under the OHSA to failing as an employer to ensure guardrails were installed around the stairwell openings.

The fine was imposed by Justice of the Peace Barry Quinn.  In addition to the fine, the court also imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge on the total, as required by the Provincial Offences Act.  The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.

Court Information at a Glance

Location:                    Ontario Court of Justice

                                    2021 Plains Rd. E.

                                    Burlington ON L7R 4M3

Judge:                        

Justice of the Peace Barry Quinn

Date of Conviction:

July 20, 2009

Defendants:

Stelumar Advanced Manufacturing (Milton) Inc.

Matter:                      

Occupational Health and Safety

Conviction(s):

Ontario Regulation 851, Section 13(1)(b)

Crown Counsel:

Judy Chan