The City of Prince Albert accepts responsibility for Health and Safety Violation

The City of Prince Albert has pleaded guilty in Provincial Court to a violation of the Saskatchewan Health and Safety Act stemming from an incident in July 2024. The City accepted a fine of $92,857 and will also be responsible for a court surcharge of $37,142.

The incident occurred when an employee was greasing the rear box of a Freightliner Dump Truck. To facilitate the work, the box needed to be raised. As the box was raised, two concrete blocks stored in the back of the truck slid rearward; the tailgate opened, and the blocks exited the rear of the box and struck the employee.

In response to the incident, the City implemented work unit-specific job hazard assessments (JHA), renewed toolbox safety meeting forms, provided training on the development of safe operating procedures (SOPs), required new SOPs to be developed across work units and is in the process of implementing new safety management software to better track and audit compliance with safety regulations. In addition, audits have been conducted to ensure compliance with new JHA, Toolbox Talk and SOP expectations, and a new Occupational Health and Safety Committee has been established at the worksite.

"This incident serves as a reminder that safety programs and policies are only effective when they are consistently applied in the workplace," said Don Wood, Health, Safety and Environment Coordinator. "Following the incident, the City undertook a comprehensive review of its safety practices and implemented additional safeguards. Our focus is on learning from this incident and continually strengthening our safety culture to help prevent similar events in the future."

Saskatchewan’s Occupational Health and Safety legislation underscores the importance of workplace safety and is designed to deter future incidents. The legislation requires employers to continuously train and equip workers in dynamic and varied work environments to ensure their safety. The substantial fine reflects the seriousness of the incident and resulting injuries.

"While we cannot change what occurred, we can learn from it and take meaningful steps to prevent similar incidents in the future," added Wood. "The improvements implemented since this incident have strengthened our safety practices, accountability measures, and oversight processes. Safety requires ongoing commitment from all employees, and we encourage all staff to actively participate in hazard identification, follow safe work procedures, and raise concerns whenever they see a risk. Together, we can continue building a workplace where safety is embedded in everything we do."

For further information, please contact:

Don Wood
Health, Safety, and Environment Coordinator
City of Prince Albert