Alec Caldwell
Why was this roofer's life worth so little?
Canadian Contractor EmergencyGeneral contractor fined $50,000 after a roofer falls to his death. Site super to spend 10 days in jail.
$50,000 was the price they put on a roofer’s life.
He fell to his death from a ladder on a residential homeowner’s renovation job site. He lost his balance and fell about six meters and struck a fence. The fall protection equipment he wore was no use to him, as it was not attached to anything at the time of the fall.
If that were your son, your brother, your dad, how would you feel about it? The $50,000 was the measly fine received by the contractor who hired this unfortunate soul. The site super, meanwhile, got 15 days in jail. Big deal, I say – it’s nowhere near enough for someone’s life. Nowhere near enough for the wife, the kids, the family. This man went to work as normal on an August morning this summer and did not return that night. Think about this and consider – what if this was your last day?
The sentence and fine were handed down by the court on Nov. 21. This means the supervisor will be out of jail ten days from now – in time to spend Christmas with his family. I’m sure it’ll be a tough time for him, as well. I’m also sure he was not aware of the weaknesses in his company’s Safety Policy & Procedures.
I’ve met many supervisors who are not aware of the implications of the position they hold. Many companies out there don’t even take the safety precautions that this roofing company had taken under the Occupational Health & Safety Act. Yet they still got prosecuted.
If you are reading this and have no Policies & Procedure, including an Internal Reporting System or an Emergency Rescue Procedure, maybe it’s time you did. See my Little Black Box article. It’s a written plan that has to be tailored to your company specific profile.
During an investigation, the Ministry of Labour’s job is to investigate, find fault and prosecute. And if you don’t tell the whole truth, they’ll find out and it’ll come back and bite you. I could easily print that company’s name and the name of the supervisors, but it’s already up on the Ontario Ministry of Labour’s website: Read Ministry of Labour bulletin November 22.
Upon investigation, the MOL inspectors found that this company did not notify a ministry inspector immediately of the fatality, nor did they send a written report of the circumstances of the occurrence to a director of the ministry within 48 hours of the occurrence, as required by law. Make your policies as tight as you can, as you never know the day you’ll need them in your defense.
Contact monica@carahs.org for Policies & Procedures or call toll-free 1-866-366-2930.
CARAHS is a non profit association for renovators and home services providers. We offer education, information and benefits.
CARAHS offers over 90 Health and Safety e-courses online here.
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“I read your article with interest but was not surprised at the accident occurring nor at the outcome at the end. there is not enough money in the world to replace someone’s’ life. This roofer was a son, brother, uncle, father, friend, etc to others, money cannot replace these relationships nor obligations. I wonder about homeowners who hire contractors and do not ask for their WSIB certificate as
whether they know their liability should one of the workers injure themselves”
Reply at: Small Business: The Globe and Mail LinkedIn
by Sarah Gayer CHRP, C.Med.,CMC, WFC :
“The amount of money is supposed to help the family cope without his income and also punish the contractor for not taking safety precautions. That amount doesn’t come close to doing either. Very sad” Reply at: Contractor Talk LinkedIn by James Hurley
Hi Sarah, Thank you for sharing your sentiments and it has to be a huge loss to this persons family. I wish I could tell more about this person, but I’m sure he’ll be sadly missed by his family for all those years still to come.
For WSIB, I hope homeowners are hearing the WSIB current media warnings about asking contractors for WSIB clearances from those completing work at their homes. In the WSIB message they heavily remind homeowners that they to could also be fined of up to $100,000 for contractors they hire, that are not registered with WSIB or have a valid clearance certificate. How could this happen?
Well for one example, last week I’ve came over a few homeowners who were building there own new residential residences. They were hiring contractors to do the work. They don’t currently live there, so its not their main place of residence. The home is really a building site and is seen no differently than someone like Home Depot store building a new store.
The homeowner in cases like this are normally seen as the constructor and they can be prosecuted for any work related injuries to workers on site, whether their someone else’s employees or self employed workers. The Ministry of Labour (MOL) sees everyone as your employees under the Ontario Occupational Health & Safety Act and under WSIB rules.
There seems to no intervention along the way for these homeowners. No know puts up any red flags to tell them. Not even their local municipality, as its not their concern and for them its about following building code and collecting fees. Architects and others involved don’t seem to red flag it either.
These Homeowners/constructors face if prosecuted, the possibility of up to a $25,000 fine and a 25% victims surcharge. Worse still: they can also get up to 12 months in jail for non compliance of the Health & Safety Act.
Taking this a step further: If homeowners send someone to their rental income home. This rental home is seen as a commercial property and again safety issues and WSIB fall on the shoulders of the owner of these rental properties, while workers complete work on this rental residence .
Lastly: If a homeowner renovates their basement and makes it into a hair dressing salon or company home office or whatever and the contractors are paid by a business cheque, this is deemed commercial work, even though its inside a persons main place of residence. MOL & WSIB rules apply.
This is huge problem and most homeowners do not realize the DANGERS they face carrying out projects like these. They unknowingly put themselves in theses situations and the laws there ready and waiting to bite big time!
If anyone’s out there reading this in Ontario, Toronto, the GTA area and needs to know more about this, we suggest they call our office now toll free at: 1 866 366 2930 and speak to Monica, our CARAHS co-founder.