Lafarge Canada Inc. Fined $350,000 After Worker Killed

Napanee, Ont. - Lafarge Canada Inc., a manufacturer of construction material, pleaded guilty today to a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) that caused the death of a worker.  The company was fined $350,000.

On August 27, 2008, workers at the company's cement plant in Ernestown were lining the inside of a kiln with new bricks.  To install bricks on the ceiling of the kiln, the workers used a special rig.  The rig was composed of a work platform mounted on four legs with an overhead arch to hold up bricks.  As the workers advanced the rig along the sloping kiln floor, they had to adjust its legs to keep the work platform level.  As the rig was being adjusted, its platform lurched forward. The workers who had been on the platform fell, as did the rig's arch.  The arch, weighing over 400 kilograms, landed on one of the workers, fatally crushing him.

A Ministry of Labour investigation found that a manufacturer's sign on the rig prohibited workers from staying on the rig as it was being moved.  The company did not have a written policy or clearly planned procedures for moving and adjusting the rig on the sloping floor of the kiln.

Lafarge Canada Inc. pleaded guilty to failing to take the reasonable precaution of ensuring no worker was on the platform of the rig as it was being moved or adjusted.

The fine was imposed by Justice of the Peace John Doran.  In addition to the fine, the court 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.

Court Information at a Glance

Location:                    Ontario Court of Justice

                                    41 Dundas St. W.

                                    Napanee, Ont.

Judge:                         Justice of the Peace John Doran

Date of Conviction:     January 20, 2010

Defendant:                  Lafarge Canada Inc.

Matter:                        Occupational Health and Safety

Conviction:                 OHSA, Section 25(2)(h)

Crown Counsel:          Jeffrey Clarke and Catherine Glaister

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