An Ottawa business whose employee died working on his boss’s property is now facing workplace safety charges alleging the company did not take proper steps to ensure the man made it home alive that day.
On a September weekend afternoon last year, Ron Hill, 62, was struck by the scoop of an excavator being operated by another worker, according to a report from the Office of the Chief Coroner. It happened on a property owned by Hill’s boss on the city’s eastern outskirts.
Hill, a floor installer working for Southgate Carpets Inc., was working on a house being demolished when he was hit, according to the coroner’s office. He fell from the second storey and was later pronounced dead at hospital.
Earlier this summer, Ontario’s Ministry of Labour filed four charges against Southgate alleging the company violated the province’s Occupational Health and Safety Act by not following one or more construction project regulations.
One of those regulations calls for work platforms to be equipped with guardrails and to be free of unguarded openings. Another calls for workers to be adequately protected by “the highest ranked method” available if it’s not possible to provide a guardrail.
And another regulation requires that construction material and equipment be stored safely.
The full list of charges facing Southgate can be found here. None of the charges has been proven in court.
Paul Lalonde, the lawyer representing Southgate owner Mike Charaf, said via email last week that Charaf was devastated by Hill’s death and expresses his sincere condolences to Hill’s family.
Lalonde added his firm is reviewing the Crown’s disclosure materials and declined further comment.
First Christmas missed
Hill’s sister Lynn Chénier alerted CBC to the charges and said they left her feeling angry.
“If the proper precautions had been put in place, Ronnie would have been with us most likely [last] Christmas,” she said last week, adding that she misses Hill’s hearty laugh.
Hill’s family had been surprised to learn he died while working high up, since Southgate is considered a flooring contractor. They wanted a clearer picture of what led to Hill’s death and the preventative safety measures that were taken.
Chénier said the charges now leave her wondering whether there was a spotter at the site.
The coroner’s investigation statement, which Chénier shared with CBC, did offer her some solace. It noted Hill was absent of vital signs immediately after being hit and losing consciousness.
To Chénier, that suggests “he was gone when he hit the ground” and didn’t suffer.
Lynn Chénier, whose brother Ron Hill was killed while working on his boss’s property last fall, says the first year without him has been difficult for her family.
Southgate’s first appearance in provincial offences court is set for this Thursday.
In the event of a conviction, a judge will consider a number of factors when deciding on the dollar amount of any fines.
That includes the size of the business (the WSIB classifies Southgate as a small business), expressions of remorse and any prior workplace safety convictions.
Last fall, the ministry told CBC it had not received any other health and safety complaints about Southgate in the five years leading up to Hill’s death.