REAL ONTARIO SAFETY FINES: WHY COMPLIANCE MATTERS

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Ontario Doesn't Look the Other Way

Ontario takes workplace safety seriously — and the numbers prove it. The Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development (MLITSD) actively investigates incidents, conducts inspections, and prosecutes violations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA). When companies cut corners on safety, the consequences are severe: criminal charges, six-figure fines, and — worst of all — workers who never come home.

Falls from heights are a leading cause of work injuries and deaths on Ontario construction projects.

The cases below are real. They involve real companies, real fines, and real workers who were seriously injured or killed because proper safety measures weren't in place. Every one of these tragedies was preventable.

Case 1: $150,000 Fine — Fatal Fall in Windsor (October 2018)

In October 2018, a Windsor-area construction company was fined $150,000 after a worker was fatally injured in a fall from height. The investigation revealed that the company had failed to provide adequate fall protection for workers operating at elevation. There was no guardrail system, no travel restraint, and no personal fall arrest system in place at the time of the incident.

What Went Wrong

• Workers were performing tasks at height with no fall protection equipment provided
• The worker fell through a skylight on the plant roof during a break from pulling electrical cable

What Proper Training Would Have Prevented

MLITSD-approved Working at Heights training teaches workers to identify fall hazards before they begin work. A trained workforce would have recognized the unguarded skylights and refused unsafe work — as is their legal right under the OHSA. Trained supervisors would have ensured fall protection systems were in place and inspected before anyone stepped onto the work surface.

Case 2: $90,000 Fine — Young Worker Killed in Windsor (October 2017)

In October 2017, a Windsor roofing company was fined $90,000 after a young worker fell from the roof of a house being re-shingled. The worker was in hospital for more than six months without regaining consciousness, and died. The ministry found that every worker on the roof had been supplied with fall protection and trained and tested in its use, but while carrying old shingles across the roof to the dumpster, the young worker apparently did not reattach their lanyard to the safety line.

The Gap Between Training and Practice

This case shows how thin the margin is. The equipment was on site and the training had been done, but fall protection only works if it stays connected every time a worker moves. The legal duty to make sure workers are protected stays with the employer, even when the worker has been trained.

• Every worker had a harness, lanyard and safety line, and had been trained and tested in using them
• Crossing the roof meant moving the lanyard between safety lines, and on one trip it was apparently not reattached
• The company pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the worker was adequately protected from falling, as Reg. 213/91, s. 26.1(2) requires

Equipment and training only protect workers if they are used every minute of the shift. Plan how workers will move between anchors and lines so they never have to unclip to get where they're going, and supervise it.

Case 3: $125,000 Fine — Restoration Worker Killed (July 2018)

In July 2018, a restoration company was fined $125,000 after a worker was killed during brick repair work on a Toronto building. The worker was on the platform of a boom lift being raised to 50 to 60 feet when the machine tipped over, throwing the worker onto a concrete driveway.

Experience Is Not Protection

This case serves as a stark reminder that safety devices only protect workers when they are left working. In fact, complacency among experienced workers is a well-documented risk factor. Workers who have "done it a thousand times" may skip steps, take shortcuts, or underestimate hazards they've encountered before without incident.

• Two limit switches on the boom had been tied back or bent out of action, so its stabilizing lock-out wedges never extended
• The boom was raised on plywood over a sloped lawn, although the manufacturer allowed it to be raised only on level ground
• The company pleaded guilty to allowing a modification that reduced the equipment's safety factor (Reg. 213/91, s. 95(2))

Working at Heights training isn't just for new workers. It reinforces critical habits, updates workers on current regulations, and — most importantly — keeps safety top of mind for those who might otherwise grow complacent.

Case 4: $90,000 Fine — Critical Injuries (April 2018)

In April 2018, a Mississauga construction company was fined $90,000 after a worker fell from a stepladder and suffered critical injuries. The worker was standing near the top of a 10-foot stepladder, reaching above a drop ceiling to connect electrical wiring. As constructor, the company had not provided a scaffold or other work platform for work that could not be done safely from the ground.

The Human Cost Beyond the Fine

A $90,000 fine is significant. But the true cost of this incident goes far beyond the penalty paid to the court:

• The worker — suffered critical injuries from a fall off a stepladder
• The worker's family — lost income, increased caregiving burden, emotional trauma
• The company — fines, increased WSIB premiums, legal fees, reputational damage, lost contracts
• Co-workers — witnessed the incident, dealt with guilt and trauma, lost trust in their employer

The financial penalty is the smallest part of the cost. The real price is paid in broken bodies, shattered families, and careers that end on a stretcher.

When you add up WSIB premium increases, legal defence costs, project delays, difficulty hiring, and the lasting damage to a company's reputation, the total cost of a serious fall incident can be many times the court-imposed fine.

Case 5: $70,000 Fine — Lack of Training (March 2019)

In March 2019, a Tecumseh electrical contractor was fined $70,000 after a worker installing light fixtures at a Windsor industrial facility stepped off an elevating work platform into the ceiling space and fell about 6.5 metres through the suspended ceiling, suffering critical injuries. The worker was alone, unsupervised and not using fall protection, and the ministry found the worker had never been trained in fall protection, working at heights or elevating work platforms.

Why This Case Matters Most

This is the case that should concern every employer in Ontario's construction industry. The worker who fell had never been trained to work at heights, and the company was convicted of failing to provide information, instruction and supervision as well as fall protection. The absence of training is itself a violation, and the MLITSD can and does issue orders and lay charges based on inspection findings.

• The worker had no training in fall protection, working at heights or elevating work platforms and was working alone and unsupervised
• The worker was not protected by any fall protection when stepping from the platform into the ceiling space
• The company was convicted under OHSA s. 25(1)(c) for the missing fall protection (Reg. 213/91, s. 26.1(2)) and under s. 25(2)(a) for failing to provide information, instruction and supervision

Since April 1, 2015, all workers on construction projects who may use specific methods of fall protection must complete an MLITSD-approved Working at Heights training program. This is not optional. It is not a suggestion. It is the law.

The Penalties Are Higher Now

Every case above was decided under older, lower limits. Ontario has since raised the maximum OHSA penalties to the highest of any province:

• Individuals, including supervisors and workers: up to $500,000 and/or 12 months in jail (since July 1, 2022)
• Directors and officers of a corporation: up to $1,500,000, personally (since July 1, 2022)
• Corporations: up to $2,000,000 per offence (since October 26, 2023)

Courts must also now weigh aggravating factors written into the OHSA, including whether the offence caused death or serious injury, was committed recklessly, ignored an inspector’s order, or followed earlier convictions. And the ministry now has two years, not one, to lay charges.

Enforcement has not slowed either. In its 2024–25 campaign on falls in residential construction, the ministry made 6,978 field visits to 4,974 workplaces and issued 23,421 orders and requirements, including 2,448 stop-work orders. The most-cited problems were workers not using required fall protection and missing or inadequate guardrails.

What These Cases Teach Us

Across all five cases, the same patterns appear again and again. These weren't freak accidents or unforeseeable events. They were predictable, preventable failures rooted in the same basic shortcomings:

• Missing fall protection — Workers at height with no guardrails, no harnesses, no travel restraint systems
• Inadequate training — Workers who were never taught how to identify hazards, use equipment, or exercise their right to refuse unsafe work
• Cutting corners — Treating safety as a cost to minimize rather than an investment that protects people and the business
• Poor supervision — Supervisors who either didn't know the rules or didn't enforce them
• Paper-only compliance — Safety policies that existed in binders but not on job sites

The pattern is clear: when training is missing, when equipment is absent, and when supervision fails, workers get hurt or killed. Every single time, the outcome was preventable.

How to Stay Compliant

Compliance with Ontario's Working at Heights requirements is not complicated. It takes commitment, consistency, and a genuine belief that every worker deserves to go home safe. Here is what every employer in the construction industry should be doing:

• Ensure all workers have valid WAH certification — Every worker who may use fall protection on a construction project needs MLITSD-approved Working at Heights training. Verify cards and keep copies on file.
• Inspect equipment daily — Harnesses, lanyards, lifelines, anchors, and guardrails must be inspected before each use. Remove damaged equipment from service immediately.
• Have a written rescue plan — For every job where fall arrest is used, you need a plan for how a fallen worker will be rescued promptly. Suspension trauma is a medical emergency.
• Keep detailed records — Training certificates, equipment inspection logs, safety meeting minutes, site-specific safety plans. If it isn't documented, it didn't happen.
• Schedule refresher training before expiry — WAH training is valid for 3 years. Don't wait until it expires — book refresher courses well in advance so there's no gap in coverage.
• Empower supervisors — Supervisors need the knowledge and authority to stop work when conditions are unsafe. Invest in their training too.
• Foster a culture of safety — Make it clear that production never takes priority over protection. Workers who raise safety concerns should be thanked, not punished.

The cost of a Working at Heights training course is $150 plus tax per worker. The cost of non-compliance — measured in fines, injuries, and lives — is immeasurably higher. The choice should be obvious.