ArcelorMittal Long Products fined $75K for worker injury

December 5, 2018 – ArcelorMittal Long Products Canada MP Inc., a manufacturer of steel products, has been fined $75,000 in Ontario’s provincial offences court after a worker was critically injured attempting to connect coils to a hoist with a chain. 

The court also imposed a 25-per-cent victim fine surcharge as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime.

The incident took place on March 11, 2017 in Hamilton, Ontario. According to the Ontario Ministry of Labour, a worker was engaged in the handling and storage of oil-tempered wire coils at the workplace. Coils are stored upright, leaning against a rotating block, until moved to the strapping area.

The worker was working as a line blocker, which involved connecting the coils to a hoist so that the coils could be moved to the strapping area. As per established procedure, the worker attempted to place a chain around a coil. The coil fell forward, knocked the worker to the floor and injured the worker.

To prevent coils from tipping, falling or endangering a worker, the company required workers to lean the coils on a 10-degree angle, but did not specify how this task was to be performed. The Ministry of Labour investigation revealed that the coil was not stored so it would not tip, collapse or fall, and it could not be removed without endangering the safety of the worker, which violates the rules for industrial establishments in the Occupational Health and Safety Act.