R. v. Hub Meat Packers Ltd., (2000) 226 N.B.R.(2d) 33 (TD)

• Judge: Rideout, J.
• Court: Court of Queen's Bench of New Brunswick (Canada)
• Case Date: March 31, 2000
• Jurisdiction: New Brunswick
• Citations: (2000), 226 N.B.R.(2d) 33 (TD)

R. v. Hub Meat Packers Ltd. (2000), 226 N.B.R.(2d) 33 (TD);

    226 R.N.-B.(2e) 33; 579 A.P.R. 33

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[French language version follows English language version]

[La version française vient à la suite de la version anglaise]

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Temp. Cite: [2000] N.B.R.(2d) TBEd. AP.018

Hub Meat Packers Ltd. (appellant) v. Her Majesty the Queen (respondent)

(M/A/18/99)

Indexed As: R. v. Hub Meat Packers Ltd.

New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench

Trial Division

Judicial District of Moncton

Rideout, J.

March 31, 2000.

Summary:

The accused company was convicted of four counts under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The sentence consisted of $19,000 in fines and $2,850 in victim fine surcharges, for a total of $21,850. The ac­cused appealed the conviction and sen­tence.

The New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Division, dismissed the convic­tion appeal and allowed the sentence appeal. The court imposed $9,000 in fines, plus the appropriate victim surcharge.

Trade Regulation - Topic 7883

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Failure to ensure health and safety of workers - An employee was injured in a work place accident on his second shift, while working on a ham skinning machine - His right wrist was cut when it came in contact with the blade of the machine - The New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Division, upheld the ac­cused's conviction for, inter alia, failing to take every reasonable precaution to ensure an employee's health and safety by failing to inform an employee of warning instruc­tions and failing to provide the operator with the operating instructions outlined in the manual.

Trade Regulation - Topic 7884

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Failure to take every reasonable precaution - [See Trade Regulation - Topic 7883 ].

Trade Regulation - Topic 7889

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Failure to provide information, instruction, training or supervision - [See Trade Regu­lation - Topic 7883 ].

Trade Regulation - Topic 7894

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Failure to provide safe equipment - An employee was injured in a work place accident on his second shift, while working on a ham skinning machine - His right wrist was cut when it came in contact with the blade of the machine - The New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Division, upheld the accused's conviction under s. 235(1) of Regulation 91-919 under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, for failing to ensure that the machine was "erected, installed, assembled, started, operated, used, handled, stored, stopped, serviced, tested, cleaned, adjusted, main­tained, repaired and dismantled in ac­cordance with the manufacturer's specifica­tions".

Trade Regulation - Topic 7895

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Failure to notify commission of injury - An employee was injured in a work place accident - His right wrist was cut when it came in contact with the blade of a ham skinning machine and it initially bled quite profusely - Members of the accused com­pany's EMT group rendered first aid, got the bleeding stopped, applied a ban­dage and acquired a taxi so the employee could go to the hospital - They believed the injury to be minor - In reality, the em­ployee remained at the hospital during the day awaiting necessary surgery - The accident happened at approximately 4:00 a.m. - The accused notified the Workplace Health and Safety and Compensation Com­mission, which had a 24 hour 1-800 line, at approximately 9:00 a.m. - The New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Division, upheld the accused's con­viction for failure to notify the Commis­sion of an injury requiring hospitalization immediate­ly after its occurrence.

Trade Regulation - Topic 7896

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Permitting an accident scene to be dis­turbed - An employee was injured in a work place accident - He cut his wrist on the blade of a ham skinning machine on which he was working - Members of the accused company's EMT group rendered first aid and acquired a taxi so the em­ployee could go to the hospital - They erroneously believed the injury to be minor - The Workplace Health and Safety and Compensation Commission, which was notified five hours after the accident, sent officials to visit the accused's facility later on the same morning - In the interim, officials of the accused inspected the skin­ner and ultimately moved it to another location for repairs or renovations - The New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Division, upheld the accused's con­viction for, inter alia, permitting the acci­dent scene to be disturbed.

Trade Regulation - Topic 7905

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Sentences - Failure to ensure health and safety of workers - An employee was injured in a work place accident on his second shift, while working on a ham skinning machine - His right wrist was cut when it came in contact with the blade of the machine - The accused was convicted of, inter alia, failing to take every reason­able precaution to ensure an employee's health and safety by failing to inform an employee of warning instructions and failing to provide the operator with the operating instructions outlined in the man­ual - The accused was fined $7,500, plus the appropriate victim fine surcharge, for that offence - The New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Division, reduced the fine to $2,500, plus the appropriate victim fine surcharge - While deterrence was relevant, the issues of cooperation and first offence, among others, had to be considered.

Trade Regulation - Topic 7916

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Sentences - Failure to notify commission of injury requiring hospitalization - An employee was injured in a work place accident - His right wrist was cut when it came in contact with the blade of a machine - Members of the accused com­pany's EMT group rendered first aid and acquired a taxi so the employee could go to the hospital - They believed the injury to be minor - In reality, the employee remained at the hospital during the day awaiting necessary surgery to reconnect certain nerves - The accident happened at approximately 4:00 a.m. - The accused notified the Workplace Health and Safety and Compensation Commission at approx­imately 9:00 a.m. - The accused was con­victed of, inter alia, failing to inform the Commission immediately of an offence requiring hospitalization - The New Bruns­wick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Divi­sion, upheld a $2,000 fine, plus the ap­propriate victim fine surcharge, for that offence.

Trade Regulation - Topic 7917

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Sentences - Permitting an accident scene to be disturbed - An employee was injured in a work place accident - He cut his wrist on the blade of a ham skinning machine on which he was working - The accident happened at approximately 4:00 a.m. - The accused company did not notify the Work­place Health and Safety and Com­pensation Commission until approximately 9:00 a.m. - Commission officials visited the ac­cused's facility later in the morning - In the interim, officials of the accused in­spected the skinner and ultimately moved it to another location for repairs or reno­vations - The accused was convicted of, inter alia, permitting the accident scene to be dis­turbed - The New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Division, upheld a $2,000 fine, plus the appropriate victim fine surcharge, for that offence.

Trade Regulation - Topic 7918

Industrial safety - Particular offences - Sentences - Failure to provide safe equip­ment - An employee was injured in a work place accident on his second shift, while working on a ham skinning machine - His right wrist was cut when it came in contact with the blade of the machine - The ac­cused was convicted of, inter alia, failing to ensure that the machine was "erected, installed, assembled, started, operated, used, handled, stored, stopped, serviced, tested, cleaned, adjusted, main­tained, re­paired and dismantled in accordance with the manufacturer's specifica­tions" - The accused was fined $7,500, plus the appro­priate victim fine surcharge, for that of­fence - The New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Division, reduced the fine to $2,500, plus the appro­priate victim fine surcharge - While deterrence was relevant, the issues of cooperation and first offence, among others, had to be con­sid­ered.

Cases Noticed:

R. v. Sault Ste. Marie (City), [1978] 2 S.C.R. 1299; 21 N.R. 295; 85 D.L.R.(3d) 161; 40 C.C.C.(2d) 353; 3 C.R.(3d) 30; 7 C.E.L.R. 53, refd to. [para. 9].

R. v. Chapin, [1979] 2 S.C.R. 121; 26 N.R. 289; 45 C.C.C.(2d) 333, refd to. [para. 10].

Toneguzzo-Norvell et al. v. Savein and Burnaby Hospital, [1994] 1 S.C.R. 114; 162 N.R. 161; 38 B.C.A.C. 193; 62 W.A.C. 193; 18 C.C.L.T.(2d) 209; 110 D.L.R.(4th) 289; [1994] 2 W.W.R. 609; 87 B.C.L.R.(2d) 1, refd to. [para. 12].

R. v. Colbeck (1978), 42 C.C.C.(2d) 117 (Ont. C.A.), refd to. [para. 12].

R. v. Arthur (1981), 63 C.C.C.(2d) 117 (B.C.C.A.), refd to. [para. 12].

R. v. McDonnell (T.E.), [1997] 1 S.C.R. 948; 210 N.R. 241; 196 A.R. 321; 141 W.A.C. 321; 114 C.C.C.(3d) 436, refd to. [para. 14].

R. v. Atcon Construction Inc. (1994), 149 N.B.R.(2d) 133; 381 A.P.R. 133 (Prov. Ct.), refd to. [para. 14].

R. v. Lorneville Mechanical Contractors Ltd. (1993), 145 N.B.R.(2d) 161; 372 A.P.R. 161 (Prov. Ct.), refd to. [para. 14].

Authors and Works Noticed:

Ewaschuk, Eugene G., Criminal Pleadings and Practices (2nd Ed.), generally [para. 10].

Counsel:

M. Morley Rinzler, on behalf of the appel­lant;

Luc Labonté, on behalf of the Crown.

This appeal was heard on March 31, 2000, by Rideout, J., of the New Brunswick Court of Queen's Bench, Trial Division, Judicial District of Moncton, who delivered the following decision on the same date.