TORONTO — Maple Leaf Foods Inc. was recently fined C$170,000 following significant injuries to a contractor at its Brantford, Ontario, facility.

The contractor’s injury occurred in 2022 while doing maintenance and repair on two industrial fans. Circumstances that led to the injury violated the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA).

The report stated the contractor was investigating the malfunction of two process fans located inside a freezer. Following inspection, the worker observed openings in the guard over one fan, made from metal “tines” or “bars.”

According to the investigation, the worker reached through one of the openings of the fan guard to turn the fan blades and free any possible obstructions. However, the fans were working at full speed and caused the critical injury.

After the incident, the worker was interviewed by an inspector for the Ministry of Labour, Immigration Training and Skills Development. The report stated that the worker demonstrated “a lack of knowledge on how to properly lock out the fans to ensure they were not operational.”

It was discovered later that a secondary electrical panel needed to be locked out or switched off to isolate the electrical supply to the fan involved. However, the panel was broken during the incident, making it impossible to lock out the fan even if the worker knew the proper way to lock it out.

Along with the C$170,00 fine and guilty plea in the Provincial Offences Court, the court also imposed a 25% victim fine surcharge required by the Provincial Offences Act.