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WorkSafeBC 2008 penalty report

Richmond, B.C., February 5, 2009 — In 2008, WorkSafeBC imposed 152 penalties totaling more than $2.7 million for violations of the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation (the OHS Regulation) and the Workers Compensation Act (the Act). Individual penalties ranged from $1,000 up to $150,000.

The highest penalty imposed in 2008 was for $150,000.00 against Encana Corporation. This was in relation to an incident that resulted in a fatality. The firm, as prime contractor, failed to do everything reasonably practicable to coordinate activities and to establish and maintain a system or process to ensure compliance. Inadequately trained workers were performing the high-risk activity of falling trees and a worker was struck by two hung-up trees. The prime contractor’s failure to coordinate activities resulted in a lack of first aid services and a lack of evacuation procedures that may have prevented the worker’s death following the incident.

A complete list of the 2008 penalties and additional background is posted on WorkSafeBC.com.

“Many of the 2008 penalties are associated with a fatality or serious injury, which are devastating to the worker and their families. Our focus must be on preventing these tragedies,” said Roberta Ellis, vice-president of the Policy, Investigations and Review Divisions at WorkSafeBC.

Since 2007, WorkSafeBC has increased its inspection and investigation capacity, and focused on the industries and employers that present the highest risk to workers. This has included special inspection campaigns targeting gas stations, forestry operations, farm transport vehicles, construction sites, and employers where compliance has been known to be an issue — such as roofing. In 2008, WorkSafeBC officers also conducted 32,959 inspections and issued 60,904 orders. This is 10% increase in inspections compared to the previous year and nearly a 20% increase in numbers of orders issued.

WorkSafeBC penalizes where there has been a serious and/or repeated violation of occupational health and safety laws and regulations; where a sanction is required to motivate the specific employer to comply with the law; and where the sanction can act as a deterrent for others. “When consultation and education fail to change an employer’s approach to health and safety in their workplace, we have to consider sanctions such as penalties,” said Ellis.

Penalties imposed may be appealed to the Review Division of WorkSafeBC and employers can appeal Review Division decisions to an external and independent appeal body — the Workers' Compensation Appeal Tribunal. Approximately 90 percent of penalties are upheld on appeal.

Penalty amounts will vary year over year due to the size of employers penalized and the seriousness of the violations. In extraordinary circumstances, the Act authorizes WorkSafeBC to go beyond the basic formula to levy and collect from an employer all or part of the compensation payable in respect of an injury or death where it is due substantially to the employer’s failure to comply with the OHS Regulation. This is referred to as a ‘claims cost levy’.
The maximum penalty amount for a first violation is $519,000. Penalty amounts do not and cannot reflect the human suffering and loss related to the incident.

RHA Enterprises Ltd. Penalty and Investigation

In addition, in January 2009, WorkSafeBC imposed a penalty in the amount of $69,800.60 against RHA Enterprises Ltd. in relation to a motor vehicle accident that killed 3 farm workers in 2007. This amount includes a basic penalty amount of $11,543.58; a 30 percent upward variation as warranted in the circumstances; and a claims cost levy of $54,793.95.

“We all remember this tragedy,” said Roberta Ellis. “Three people died and 13 others were badly injured. While imposing a penalty will not change that, penalties are intended to provide a deterrent effect and contribute to preventing tragedies like this from occurring ever again.”

In 2008 WorkSafeBC concluded its investigation into this incident and submitted its report to the Coroner who will hold an Inquest into the matter later this year. The investigation found that on March 7, 2007, a 15-passenger van owned by RHA Enterprises Ltd., carrying 16 passengers plus the driver was traveling east on Highway 1 to Rainbow Greenhouses Inc. in Chilliwack. The vehicle collided with two transport trucks, rolled and landed on its roof on the highway median. It was raining heavily at the time, visibility was poor, and the roads were very wet.

One of the violations cited in the RHA investigation was the over-crowding of the 15 passenger van. In fact 17 people were onboard at the time of the incident. WorkSafeBC identified the last two workers to board the van and has ordered RHA Enterprises Ltd. to pay an amount equivalent to their claim costs in addition to the penalty amount. This is applicable because these workers would not have been injured if they had not been in the van – the employer’s violation substantially contributed to these injuries.

“All British Columbians have been saddened by this tragedy,” said Ellis. “While WorkSafeBC had a part to play in this investigation, this incident was primarily a motor vehicle accident and we had an interest in the results of the provincial prosecution. In due course we will also cooperate fully with the Coroner and any inquiry or inquest that follows.”

The RHA Enterprises penalty order is available on WorkSafeBC’s web site at WorkSafeBC.com.

Prosecution

Though infrequent, WorkSafeBC can refer cases to Crown Counsel to consider for prosecution. The Crown may consider it in the public interest to pursue formal charges rather than administrative remedies.

In 2008, a prosecution against Aaron Groenhuysen Mechanical Ltd. (AGM) and its owner Aaron Groenhuysen — in connection with a workplace fatality — resulted in a guilty plea in British Columbia Provincial Court. AGM and its owner and supervisor pleaded guilty to breaching section 26.16 (3) of the Regulation, and were fined $60,000 and $20,000, respectively.
 
AGM was operating near Creston, B.C. in January 2005 when a skidder being used to drag logs down a hill rolled over and fatally crushed the operator. The WorkSafeBC investigation found that the skidder, which was intended for slope grades of 35 percent or less, was being used on slope grades of 55 to 60 percent.

WorkSafeBC is an independent provincial statutory agency governed by a Board of Directors that serves nearly two million workers and about 200,000 employers. WorkSafeBC was born out of a compromise between B.C.’s workers and employers in 1917 where workers gave up the right to sue their employers and fellow workers for injuries on the job in return for a no-fault insurance program fully paid for by employers. The organization is committed to safe and healthy workplaces and to providing return-to-work rehabilitation and legislated compensation benefits.

For more information, contact:

Donna Freeman Director, Media Relations WorkSafeBC 604 276-3141or Donna.Freeman@worksafebc.com