An auto shop in Richmond will have to pay $2,969.83 in administrative penalties after a shop manager died on the job in 2022.
WorkSafeBC imposed the fine on Maxeme Automotive Service Ltd. at 2-2300 Simpson Rd. on May 23 after finding high-risk violations at the worksite.
The incident took place on May 9, 2022 while the shop manager was guiding a worker driving a pickup truck onto an automotive lift, according to the incident investigation report published Nov. 15, 2023.
The shop manager was standing in front of the lift between the tracks. His back was against the wheel alignment machine at the back wall of the shop.
While the worker drove the truck down the tracks of the lift, following the shop manager's hand signals, the truck "abruptly accelerated down the tracks of the automotive lift."
"The (shop manager) raised his left and right palms toward the truck. The front tires of the truck came off the front of the automotive lift tracks and the front bumper and grill of the truck collided with the (shop manager)," reads the report.
"The (shop manager) became pinned between the truck’s front bumper and the wheel alignment machine."
Two workers and Maxeme's co-director worked together and freed him about eight minutes after the incident. Emergency services arrived shortly after and sent the shop manager to the hospital.
"The (shop manager) sustained serious injuries and later died in the hospital," reads the report.
Standing in the path of moving vehicle contrary to safety guidelines
Five factors contributed to the worker's death, WorkSafeBC found.
Maxeme had failed to conduct a formal hazard identification for driving or guiding vehicles onto and off the automotive lift and did not make sure workers knew the risks of their assigned tasks, according to the report.
A qualified third-party mechanic found the front and rear brakes were in "good operating condition" and the fuel throttle system operated "normally."
However, the ends of the automotive lift tracks were "very close" to the wheel alignment machine and workers were only told verbally to walk "carefully in the shop when vehicles were in motion and to drive carefully and slowly when operating vehicles."
"Had Maxeme collaborated with workers to identify workplace hazards, it is likely the hazard of standing in front of a vehicle when it was being driven onto the automotive lift would have been identified, and controls could have been implemented to mitigate the risk," reads the report.
WorkSafeBC also found Maxeme didn't have any written safe work procedures for tasks at the shop and did not have a less formal occupational health and safety program based on regular monthly meetings with workers as required of companies with less than 20 workers.
A safety manual by the Automotive Lift Institute, which Maxeme is required to follow, specifically states one should "never stand in the path of a moving vehicle."
As well, the auto shop did not train its workers adequately and there was inadequate supervision at the site.
Training at Maxeme was delivered verbally with no written records and it was inadequate, as the shop manager had directed the worker in front of the vehicle contrary to safe work practices, the report noted.
And just "several seconds before the incident," the co-director had walked along the passenger side of the truck and directly in front of the automotive lift and workers were not made aware of the hazards.
WorkSafeBC determined three occupational health and safety violations at Maxeme, including high-risk violations of failure to inform workers of potential health or safety hazards and failure to ensure the automotive lift was operated according to industry standards.
Maxeme also failed to initiate and maintain a program to discuss and correct unsafe conditions and practices, said WorkSafeBC.
WorkSafeBC administrative penalties are imposed to motivate employers to follow occupational health and safety requirements and are calculated based on the size of the employer's payroll, the nature of the violation and any history of violations.
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