Fines for Violations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act - Woodstock Auto Recyclers Ltd.-$60,000. and Welded Tube of Canada LTD - $120,000

Woodstock Auto Recyclers Ltd. Fined $60,000 After Workers Injured

April 26, 2012

Woodstock, ON - Woodstock Auto Recyclers Ltd., a Woodstock automobile wrecking yard, was fined $60,000 for violations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act after three workers were injured.
On November 16, 2010, three workers were inside the company's Woodstock facility. One of the workers was removing a gas tank from a car. The gas tank had not been emptied. Gasoline spilled out of the tank and was ignited by a nearby inspection lamp. A fire started and the emergency exit was blocked, forcing the workers to run to the other end of the building to escape. All three workers received burns and smoke inhalation.
Woodstock Auto Recyclers Ltd. was fined $55,000 for failing to provide information, instruction and supervision to a worker for the safe removal of a gas tank. The company was also fined $5,000 for failing to ensure that emergency exits were free from obstructions.
The fines were imposed by Justice of the Peace Sonia Aleong. In addition to the fines, 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
                                    415 Hunter St.
                                    Woodstock, ON
Judge:                         Justice of the Peace Sonia Aleong
Date of Sentencing:     April 23, 2012
Defendant:                   Woodstock Auto Recyclers Ltd.
Matter:                         Occupational Health and Safety
Conviction:                  Occupational Health and Safety Act , Section 25(2)(a)
                                    Ontario Regulation 851, Section 123(2)
Crown Counsel:           David McCaskill

 

 

Welded Tube of Canada Limited Fined $120,000 After Worker Injured

April 26, 2012

Newmarket, ON - Welded Tube of Canada Limited, a Concord steel manufacturer, was fined $120,000 for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act after a worker was injured.
On August 19, 2009, a worker at the company's Concord factory was helping to change over part of a mill used to shape steel sheets into tubes. The worker was standing near the back of the mill when a section of the mill was moved into place using a rack and pinion drive system. The worker's leg was pinched between a moving rack and the mill, breaking the worker's leg.
A Ministry of Labour investigation found that the area of the mill where the worker was standing was not guarded to prevent access to the pinch point between the moving rack and the frame of the mill.
Welded Tube of Canada Limited pleaded guilty to failing to ensure that the machinery was guarded to prevent access to its pinch point.
The fine was imposed by Justice of the Peace Philip Solomon. 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
                                    465 Davis Dr.
                                    Newmarket, ON
Judge:                         Justice of the Peace Philip Solomon
Date of Sentencing:    April 24, 2012
Defendant:                  Welded Tube of Canada Limited
Matter:                        Occupational Health and Safety
Conviction:                 Ontario Regulation 851, Section 25
Crown Counsel:       Daniel Kleiman