E. Schiller

Vixman Construction Ltd. was convicted of two regulatory offences under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA) following the death of worker William Dean Maguire, who fell approximately 3.6 metres from a work surface at Billy Bishop Toronto Island Airport on March 27, 2018.

The Crown alleged that the company failed to ensure proper fall arrest system configuration and failed to arrange the fall arrest system so that a worker could not hit the ground or an object below the work.

The court imposed a $125,000 fine plus a 25% Victim Fine Surcharge and an 18-month probation order with conditions requiring the company to publish safety information, produce an educational video, and implement enhanced fall protection procedures.

A worker employed by Vixman Construction Ltd. was fatally injured when he fell approximately 3.6 metres from a work surface at Billy Bishop Toronto Island Airport on March 27, 2018.

The Crown prosecuted Vixman under the Occupational Health and Safety Act for failing to ensure that prescribed fall arrest measures and procedures were carried out in the workplace.

Specifically, the Crown alleged violations of Ontario Regulation 213/91 regarding the improper anchoring of a self-retracting lifeline (SRL) and the failure to ensure that the fall arrest system was arranged so that a worker could not hit the ground or an object below the work surface.

The defendant argued a due diligence defence, claiming it had implemented comprehensive safety training, policies, and procedures.

The court found that while Vixman maintained a robust safety program, it failed to enforce critical specific requirements at the job site, including the failure to calculate fall clearances prior to work commencement and the failure to ensure the use of a safe anchoring method.

The court convicted Vixman on both counts, finding that the defendant did not discharge its burden of proving that every reasonable precaution was taken.

Lafarge Canada Inc. pleaded guilty to failing as an employer to ensure that measures and procedures prescribed under section 72 of Ontario Regulation 851 were carried out at its decommissioned cement plant in Zorra Township, Oxford County.

An operational procurement manager died after falling approximately 30 feet from a corroded exterior catwalk that lacked adequate structural integrity and safeguards.

The defendant had a troubling prior record of four workplace deaths and one critical injury since 2003.

The Crown and defence jointly submitted a fine of $400,000 plus costs and surcharges.

The court accepted the joint submission with considerable reluctance, expressing deep concerns about whether the proposed fine would provide sufficient deterrence given the corporation's history of workplace fatalities and the failure to observe obvious safety hazards.