Worker was struck by equipment and sustained serious injuries
Marigold Infrastructure Partners Inc. – the contractor building the west Edmonton light rail transit (LRT) extension – has been fined $120,000 after pleading guilty to a workplace safety violation.
The conviction was entered on May 26 in the Edmonton Court of Justice, the Alberta government noted.
The company admitted to one count under Alberta’s Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Code for failing to ensure equipment or material was “contained, restrained or protected to eliminate potential danger.” Thirteen other charges were withdrawn by the Crown, along with charges against related entities Marigold Infrastructure Partners Limited Partnership and Marigold Infrastructure Partners LP.
The penalty includes a victim fine surcharge. Both the company and the Crown have 30 days to appeal the conviction or the fine imposed by the court.
Incident details
The charges stem from a June 23, 2023, incident on the Edmonton Valley West Line. Workers were completing post-tensioning of a segment of the LRT line when a worker was struck by equipment and sustained serious injuries.
The incident occurred when one of the jacks was pressurised, causing the concrete to crumble, COS previously reported. A tensioning bar and the jack struck the worker, resulting in serious injury.
The Alberta government noted that charges under OHS laws may be laid when failing to follow workplace safety rules results in a fatality or serious injury. In this case, the breach of safety protocols led to significant harm to a worker, prompting legal action.
Broader safety context
The withdrawn charges originally included 14 counts under Alberta’s OHS Act and OHS Code. These covered alleged failures such as not ensuring workers were adequately trained, not ensuring the health and safety of a worker, and not repeating hazard assessments when new work processes were introduced.
Marigold Infrastructure Partners was selected in 2020 to construct the 14-kilometre Valley Line West project, which is expected to be completed by 2028. The case highlights the risks associated with large-scale infrastructure projects, where strict adherence to safety standards is essential to protect employees from hazards.
The Valley Line Southeast project, built by TransEd, has also faced scrutiny for workplace safety. In 2020, TransEd recorded 59 disabling injuries, equating to more than one injury per week. The disabling injury rate was 12.49, nearly five times higher than the industry average of 2.23 and the provincial average of 2.61, according to Alberta government data.
The Edmonton LRT extension project entered its final year of rebuilding 87th Avenue, with 87th Avenue reduced to a single lane in each direction in stages. Officials said the project remained on budget and on time for 2028, according to a CBC report.
