Steel company fined after worker injured while moving steel beams
December 7, 2017 | By Rehana Begg
A worker received critical injuries while moving steel beams onto a flatbed trailer.
On July 11, 2016, a Steelcon Fabrication Inc. worker was tasked with loading steel beams onto a flat-bed trailer at its Brampton plant, which manufactures and supplies structural steel beams and columns.
After loading two piles of beams onto the trailer using an overhead crane, the worker was told to place the beams in a more secure and neater manner. This meant that the worker had to reconfigure the beams and insert wooden blocks between each beam to prevent movement during transport.
The worker’s supervisor did not monitor how the worker did this nor give any specific instructions about to perform this task safely.
When the worker tried to put a chain around the first pile of beams in order to move it to insert a wooden block, the pile of beams shifted position, tipped over and fell on top of the worker.The worker sustained critical injuries and was taken to hospital for treatment.
Investigation by the Ministry of Labour revealed that the beams had not been properly secured onto the trailer to prevent them from tipping and that the worker had not been trained on how to safely secure steel beams to prevent them from tipping.
On July 11, 2016, Steelcon failed as an employer to ensure that the measures and procedures prescribed by section 45(b) of Ontario Regulation 851 were carried out at the workplace, contrary to section 25(1)(c) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA).
On January 5, 2011, Steelcon was convicted and fined $32,500 for failing as an employer to ensure that material was moved in a manner that did not endanger a worker contrary to section 25(1)(c) of the OHSA and section 45(a) of Ontario Regulation 213/91 (the Construction Projects Regulation). The charges related to an incident in which a worker suffered permanent injuries.
On November 14, 2017, Steelcon Fabrication Inc. was fined $70,000 in Brampton court, by Justice of the Peace Richard Quon; Crown Counsel Jai Dhar.
Source: Ministry of Labour
