Employer pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the health and safety of a worker
Mr. Mike's Plumbing Ltd. – a Calgary-based employer – has been fined $330,000 after pleading guilty in the Calgary Court of Justice to one count under the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS).
The employer admitted to failing to ensure the health and safety of a worker on July 13, according to the Alberta government.
The court ordered a $115,000 fine, including the victim fine surcharge, plus a $215,000 creative sentence payment to the University of Alberta's Injury Prevention Centre, according to the Alberta government. The centre will use the funds for a province-wide safety awareness campaign for young workers.
The Crown withdrew 10 other counts that had originally been laid against the company, the Alberta government said. Justice Gordon Krinke accepted a joint sentencing submission from the Crown and defence.
The fatal incident
The charges stemmed from an incident on a water and sewer line construction site in Calgary on June 8, 2023, when a worker died after an excavation caved in and buried him, the Alberta government said.
The worker was 27-year-old apprentice plumber Liam Johnston, who had been assisting with sewer repairs in Calgary's Charleswood community.
Johnston entered a trench approximately three to six metres deep to access a sewer line. One of the trench walls unexpectedly collapsed, burying him under dirt and debris from the steep slope above.
Court heard it took nearly 12 hours and the removal of about 25 dump-truck loads of dirt to recover Johnston's body.
Victim impact and company response
Johnston's fiancée, Emily Gofton, told court, "I lost the safest place I've ever known," according to a CTV News report.
His mother, Kim Ivison, said Johnston's photograph remained on the company's safety webpage until she personally asked, on Oct. 11, 2023, that it be removed, calling the experience "deeply upsetting,” according to the same article.
Company owner Mike Brock addressed the court, stating, "I think about Liam and June 8, 2023, every day, and I am deeply sorry that a young man lost his life while working for me,” the publication reported.
Regulatory framework and next steps
Alberta's OHS laws set basic health and safety requirements for workplaces across the province, providing guidance for employers while protecting workers' rights, according to the provincial government.
Charges may be laid when a violation results in a fatality or serious injury.
The OHS Act's creative sentencing provision allows funds that would otherwise be paid as fines to instead support an organization or project promoting workplace safety, the Alberta government noted. Victim fine surcharges apply only to fines payable to the Crown, not to creative sentence payments.
The company and the Crown each have up to 30 days to appeal the conviction or penalty.
