Inadequate Lock-out Leads to Electric Shock, $50,000 Fine

Janary 2, 2017

An owner-operator of residential and commercial buildings in Ottawa, Ontario has been fined $50,000 after a worker received an electrical shock and was injured falling off a ladder while replacing part of a light fixture.

In July 2015, an employee of Bona Building & Management Limited was replacing parts of light fixtures at a Bona commercial office building in Ottawa. The task involved climbing a five-foot ladder to remove an existing ceiling ballast and insert a new one.

Contrary to the company’s own policy, the light fixture’s energy source had not been shut off, locked out or tagged. The worker suffered an electric shock, fell from the ladder, and sustained fractures.

Ontario Regulation 851 (the Industrial Establishments Regulation) stipulates that electrical equipment be de-energized and locked out when being serviced. The company pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the power supply to an electrical installation was disconnected and locked out before work was done, and was fined $50,000. The court also imposed a 25% victim fine surcharge as required by the Provincial Offences Act.

Image courtesy of DavidRockDesign at Pixabay.