The Ontario Superior Court recently sentenced a construction project manager to three and a half years in prison following an apartment scaffolding collapse on Christmas Eve 2009.
The Court found that the manager knew that five workers under his supervision were not wearing safety harnesses, yet he still allowed them to board a swing stage 13 stories high. When it collapsed, four of the workers died. The manager was found guilty of four counts of criminal negligence causing death and one count of criminal negligence causing harm. He has since been released on bail, pending his appeal.
This sentence serves as a reminder to employers about the importance of worker health and safety and the potential for significant jail time if their actions, or lack of action, are found to be criminally negligent.
Read the Court’s decision here.
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