Date of incident: May 2023
Notice of incident number: 2023180940012
Employers: Construction framing company; construction and development company (prime contractor)

Incident summary
Workers were framing and erecting exterior walls on the third storey of a townhouse building under construction. One of the workers fell off the leading edge, which was approximately 6.5 m (21 ft. 6 in.) above the ground. He fell through a temporary guardrail and sustained serious injuries.

Investigation conclusions

Cause

• Unprotected worker fell from height through incomplete guardrail. The worker, who was not using a personal fall protection system, inadvertently fell against the temporary, incomplete guardrail. Because it was incomplete, the guardrail was not able to withstand the force applied to it and detached from the building. Connecting guardrail sections had not been installed to link the portion that failed to the remaining guardrail system. These shorter guardrails would have completed the guardrail system and provided additional support to the guardrail that gave way. The guardrail, as constructed, did not provide adequate fall protection.

Contributing factors

• Lack of hazard identification and risk assessment.
  • The worker’s employer failed to identify that the guardrail system was incomplete and posed a risk of falling from height. The employer did not mitigate the risk by either completing the guardrails by joining them or ensuring that the workers wore fall restraint systems while working on the third storey.
  • The prime contractor required daily field level hazard assessment forms from the employer, and the prime contractor performed daily walk-around inspections, but these failed to identify the hazards and associated risks. The prime contractor did not ensure a system was in place to mitigate the hazards that the workers were exposed to at this multiple-employer workplace.
• Inadequate training and supervision. The employer did not document any fall protection system training or new worker orientations for its workers. Additionally, the employer did not ensure the safety of its workers by addressing the incomplete guardrail system or by ensuring that the workers used fall restraint systems while working on the third storey. The employer did not correct the inadequate fall protection systems, did not ensure that its workers were trained correctly in working at heights before beginning work, and provided training to workers that contained differing and incorrect information.
• Inadequate coordination at multiple-employer workplace. The prime contractor did not ensure that health and safety was coordinated between all employers at the workplace and failed to maintain a system that would ensure compliance with Part 2 of the Workers Compensation Act and with the Occupational Health and Safety Regulation in respect of the workplace. Workers were working at heights greater than 3 m (10 ft.) without an adequate fall protection system in place, a high-risk safety violation. The prime contractor failed to identify hazards in the workplace, appoint a qualified coordinator, complete or document site orientations, complete or document site inspections, and document safety meetings.

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