WorkSafeBC said Monday that it has issued a penalty for a 鈥渉igh-risk and repeated violation鈥� at a Victoria construction site that included not having fall protection in place.

The $43,359.04 fine has been issued to VPAC Construction Group.

鈥淲orkSafeBC observed one of this firm鈥檚 workers conducting sheeting work on the 7:12 sloped roof of a residential building, said a WorkSafeBC news release. 鈥淣o fall protection was in place, exposing the worker to a fall risk of about 6.7 m (22 ft.). The firm failed to ensure fall protection was used, a repeated and high-risk violation.鈥�

In 2022, there were 5,579 time-loss injuries in the manufacturing sector in B.C. and 860 of these were serious injuries, said WorkSafe BC.

The non-use of fall protection is an ongoing issue in the sector and resulted in 5,893 injuries in the past five-years, including 28 fatalities. Additionally, 164 administrative penalties totaling $1,027,997.55 were issued in 2022 to employers for lack of fall protection.

鈥淎dditionally, construction workers are most at risk of a fall from elevation if scaffolds or guardrails are not properly installed or if workers do not use fall protection equipment,鈥� said WorkSafe BC.

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