Company Admits to Criminal Negligence in Scaffold Collapse
An Ontario construction company has pleaded guilty to criminal negligence causing death in relation to a Dec. 24, 2009 scaffold collapse that killed four workers and severely injured a fifth worker in Toronto.
And a high-ranking company official has pleaded guilty to four occupational health and safety charges with regard to the same incident.
Several workers were repairing balconies on a high-rise apartment building from a swing- stage scaffold several floors above the ground. When another worker climbed onto the scaffold, it broke apart, plunging four men to their deaths and critically injuring a fifth worker.
Metron Construction appeared in an Ontario court on June 15, 2012 and pleaded guilty to a single count of criminal negligence causing death under federal C-45 legislation. This marks the first time
in Ontario where a company has pleaded guilty to a C-45 charge.
A high-ranking Metron official, who was not named, pleaded guilty to four OHS charges relating to inadequate fall protection training and failing to ensure that a suspended scaffold complied with Ontario OHS regulations.
Sentencing was put over to a later date, but the Crown prosecutor and defense have issued a joint submission calling for $90,000 in fines for the company official. The Crown is seeking a $1 million fine for the company.
Related: Historic Guilty Pleas to OHS & C-45 Charges Relating to Christmas Eve Fatalities
