Company Directors Jailed for Safety Violations that Led to Worker's Death
Two Canadian executives were sentenced to 25 days in jail after the 2013 warehouse accident.
Two company directors in Brampton, Ontario, Canada, have been jailed for 25 days each after pleading guilty to safety violations that led to the death of a warehouse worker, the Ontario Ministry of Labour announced Jan. 13. The two directors also were ordered to take a health and safety course within the next 60 days.
On Jan. 18, 2013, a worker was moving merchandise in a Brampton warehouse using a combination forklift/order picker. The order picker had been modified and had an additional platform supported by the forks that did not have a guardrail around it, and the worker wasn't wearing fall protection or safety shoes. The worker was found on the floor and was pronounced dead from blunt force trauma to the head.
Baldev Pura and Rajinder Saini, directors of New Mex Canada Inc., were sentenced to 25 days in jail and New Mex Canada, an importer and retailer of furniture accessories, has been fined $250,000.
The Ministry of Labour's investigation found multiple violations of Ontario's Occupational Health and Safety Act and of Ontario Regulation 851, which covers industrial workplaces. Pura and Saini were both charged with failing as directors of New Mex Canada to take reasonable care that the corporation complied with the Occupational Health and Safety Act and with Regulation 851.