Kill a Worker Go To Jail

May 11, 2016

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Wednesday, May 11, 2016 Brampton Fatalities Serve as Chilling Reminder that No Workplace Tragedy is an “Accident” Until Employer Negligence is Ruled Out (BRAMPTON, ON) ─ Two workplace fatalities at separate sites in Brampton put a pall on workers and family members across Ontario. The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) is calling…

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April 26, 2016

OFL STATEMENT April 26, 2016 Workplace Safety Must be Canada’s Bottom Line OFL Statement on National Day of Mourning for Workers Killed or Injured on the Job – April 28, 2016 Thursday, April 28 is the labour movement’s most solemn day. Thousands of workers, friends and families of fallen workers will gather at ceremonies across…

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January 11, 2016

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 11, 2016 OFL: Historic Jail Sentence Sends Strong Message to Ontario Employers (TORONTO, ON) ─ The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) President Chris Buckley called today’s jail sentence for Metron Construction Project Manager Vadim Kazenelson a historic decision that will send a strong message to every employer in the province. Ontario…

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January 8, 2016

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 8, 2016  ADVISORY: OFL Anticipates Historic Jail Sentence in Metron Construction Tragedy (Toronto) — The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) is bracing itself for a historic verdict at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, January 11, 2016, when the sentence will be announced for a Metron Construction Project Manager. Vadim Kazenelson is facing…

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November 2, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Monday, November 2, 2015 Only criminal investigations into Markham and Sudbury workplace fatalities can reveal the truth behind the tragedies (TORONTO, ON) ─ The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) is calling on the Chiefs of Police in Markham and Sudbury to ensure that criminal investigations are conducted into recent workplace fatalities to…

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January 14, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 14, 2015 Ontario Court Sends Message to Bosses: If You Kill a Worker, You’ll Go to Jail OFL Calls for Criminal Charges Against New Mex Canada (TORONTO, ON) – The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) applauded yesterday’s Ontario Court conviction against furniture retailer, New Mex Canada Inc., for a 2013 workplace…

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May 6, 2014

TWO MORE WORKERS KILLED IN SUDBURY TODAY OFL CALLS FOR IMMEDIATE ACTION TO END FATALITIES (TORONTO) -This morning’s death of two men at First Nickel Inc.’s Lockerby Mine near Sudbury has stunned the labour movement and spurred new demands for meaningful action. The deaths are reported by the company to be attributable to  “a fall…

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April 28, 2014

Read OFL President Sid Ryan’s Op Ed in today’s Hamilton Spectator on the Day of Mourning http://www.thespec.com/opinion-story/4486898-mourning-thousands-of-worker-s-deaths/  

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April 25, 2014

Since the Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act came into effect in October 1979, the following deaths and injuries have occurred in Ontario workplaces according to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (previously the Workers’ Compensation Board). See PDF below for table of statistics These fatality figures still do not reflect the true toll taken…

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April 25, 2014

This Monday, April 28, is the labour movement’s most solemn day. Thousands of workers, friends and families of those killed and injured on the job will gather at ceremonies across Ontario to pay tribute to fallen workers and to renew our call to “Fight for the Living.” In the last 25 days alone, as we…

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April 25, 2014

(TORONTO) – Today’s release by the Workplace Safety & Insurance Board (WSIB) of the latest statistics on workplace death, injuries and illnesses is fuelling new demands for progress and change. Officially, the death toll now stands at 10,384 since 1979 when Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Act began reporting. But the official numbers bear little…

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January 24, 2014

Postmedia News produced a great 6-part series on public inquests. Part 5 features OFL Secretary-Treasurer Nancy Hutchison, who said that “History keeps repeating itself.” On the day she testified at the inquest into Justin Rogers’s death, she got an alert on her BlackBerry that two more mining workers had died in a “run of muck”…

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November 22, 2013

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE November 22, 2013 OFL Says Conviction of Roofing Company CEO Sends Message to Bosses: If You Kill a Worker, You’ll Go to Jail (TORONTO, ON) – The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) President Sid Ryan applauded yesterday’s Ontario Court conviction of roofing company owner, Paul Markewycz, for a 2011 workplace tragedy that…

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September 19, 2013

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 19, 2013 OFL Says Justice Is Not Served Until Vale Executives Are Behind Bars (TORONTO, ON) ─ Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) blasted the criminal justice system for failing to bring criminal charges against Vale Canada Limited and its executives for the 2011 deaths of two miners in Vale’s Stobie Mine…

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September 4, 2013

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 4, 2013 OFL Applauds Successful Appeal that Slaps $750,000 Fine Against Metron Construction in Deaths of Four Workers (TORONTO, ON) – The Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) President Sid Ryan applauded yesterday’s appeal court decision to increase the fine against Metron Construction from $200,000 to 750,000 for the 2009 deaths of…

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April 24, 2013

OFL Statement April 24, 2013 Without Justice, No Fallen Worker Can Rest in Peace OFL Statement on Day of Mourning for Workers Killed or Injured on the Job – April 28 Thousands of workers, friends and families of those killed and injured on the job will gather at ceremonies across Ontario this weekend to memorialize…

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January 10, 2013

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 10, 2013 Metron Manager to Face Criminal Trial for Toronto High-Rise Fatalities (Toronto, Ontario) – The Ontario Federation of Labour welcomed today’s Ontario Court decision that Metron Construction Project Manager Vadim Kazenelson will face a criminal trial for the deaths of four workers and the serious injury of another in 2009.…

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September 18, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 18, 2012 (Toronto, ON) — Despite denial from the petroleum industry, the Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) believes that the illegal practice of docking worker wages for gas theft may have played a role in Saturday night’s gas-and-dash killing of a Toronto gas station attendant. Today the OFL set out to…

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