Sudbury, Ont. contractor fined $50K after worker injured in fall

THUNDER BAY, Ont.—A northern Ontario contractor has been handed a $50,000 fine for a worker injury on a Thunder Bay, Ont. jobsite in July 2016.

The incident took place at the Thunder Bay International Airport, where Pioneer Construction Inc. had been contracted to resurface the north runway.

During the project, one of the company’s employees was working to fasten a mobile office unit to a float truck near the runway. A loader had used chains to lift the unit onto the vehicle and the worker needed to climb on top of of the mobile office to detach the chains. The worker placed a ladder on the deck of the truck, but it slipped backwards. The worker fell, losing consciousness and sustaining bodily injuries.

The ladder had not been secured at both the top and bottom to prevent movement, a violation of the province’s Occupational Health and Safety Act.

Pioneer pleaded guilty to the violation and agreed to pay the fine in a Thunder Bay courtroom May 25.