BC Fed calls for criminal investigation after Kamloops accident

Apr 4, 2017 | 4:30 PM

KAMLOOPS — The BC Federation of Labour says there should have been a criminal investigation and potentially criminal charges after a 2015 death on a Kamloops worksite.

45 year old Sean Donetz died after falling from a scissor lift while working at a Cityview Shopping Centre construction site.

Last week, Worksafe BC announced it had levied a fine totalling nearly $49,000 against Onni Construction, the general contractor for the project.

Worksafe said Donetz had not been wearing fall protection, and the scissor lift didn’t have certain safety provisions in place.

BC Fed President Irene Lanzinger says the fine is not nearly enough to act as an incentive for employers to keep their workers safe, and police should have looked into the incident.

“If you are driving in your car and you kill someone, there will be an investigation. If you were responsible for that, you will be held accountable, up to and including jail-time. For some reason, we seem to let employers off the hook,” explained Lanzinger.

Lanzinger says there is legislation that allows for criminal prosecution of employers in worker deaths, but it’s rarely used.