Employer failed to constantly survey the area around the machine while it was in operation
Finning International Inc. has been ordered to pay $155,000 under Alberta's occupational health and safety (OHS) laws after a driver for another company was seriously injured by a moving loader at an equipment yard near Mildred Lake.
A worker was seriously injured when struck by the loader on Dec. 14, 2023, the Government of Alberta said in an Oct. 21 media release. According to the province's convictions record, the worker was a McMurray Serv-U Expediting Ltd. driver making deliveries and pickups.
Finning, as an employer, pleaded guilty Oct. 16 in Fort McMurray Court of Justice to one count under the OHS Code for failing to ensure equipment was operated according to the manufacturer's specifications. All other charges were withdrawn. Finning and the Crown have 30 days to appeal, Play 103.7 reported.
Driver struck at Finning yard
The specification Finning failed to follow required the area around the machine to be constantly surveyed while it was in operation, so hazards could be identified as they became visible, the record says.
The record lists the offence location as Fort McKay. The nature of the driver's injuries was not disclosed.
The withdrawn counts included one under OHS Code section 258(1)(a), which concerns workers remaining within range of moving powered mobile equipment.
Funds directed to safety education
The court directed the $155,000 to the Alberta Motor Transport Association (AMTA), CTV News reported. The AMTA will use it to develop and deliver practical safety education for commercial drivers, contractors, visitors, supervisors, workers and mobile equipment operators who work on or attend third-party sites across Alberta, according to the province.
The payment is a creative sentence under section 49 of the OHS Act, which lets courts redirect fine money to workplace safety organizations. Courts used the same tool when a farm equipment dealer was fined $108,000 after a worker injury, and for most of a $350,000 penalty against a pipeline construction company.
For a first offence, the Act sets maximum fines of $500,000 or up to six months in jail, or both, per violation, the province says.
2023 Finning conviction
Finning was also convicted on Sept. 15, 2023, according to the province's record.
That case followed a March 31, 2021, incident at its Edmonton facility, where a falling excavator counterweight killed one worker and seriously injured another. Alberta OHS laid five charges, as reported when Finning International was charged in the workplace death.
Finning pleaded guilty under section 12(d) of the OHS Code. It was fined $1,000 and ordered to pay $414,000 to Energy Safety Canada for training on critical hazards in heavy mobile equipment maintenance and service.
