YORKTON – On March 13, 2024, Sunterra Horticulture (Canada) Inc. pleaded guilty in Yorkton Provincial Court to one violation of The Occupational Health and Safety Regulations, 2020.
The company was fined for contravening clause 3-1 (a) of the regulations (being an employer at a place of employment, fail to provide and maintain plant, systems of work and working environments that ensure, as far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of the employer's workers, resulting in the serious injury of a worker). As a result, the Court imposed a fine of $50,000 with a surcharge of $20,000, for a total amount of $70,000.
One additional charge was withdrawn.
The charges stemmed from an incident that occurred on September 16, 2021, near Hyas, Saskatchewan, where a worker was seriously injured while attempting to dislodge a pallet and bale of peat moss.
The Ministry of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety works with employers and workers to eliminate workplace injuries and illnesses through education, inspections and prosecutions.