Worker killed at recycling plant leads to $265K fine for Brampton company and employment agency

The province has fined a Brampton company and an employment agency in Mississauga a combined $265,000 after a worker died at a recycling plant nearly three years ago.

The fatal incident happened at the Nexcycle Industries Inc. recycling plant on Orenda Road in Brampton on Aug. 28, 2023, Ontario’s Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development says.

A worker employed by Mississauga employment agency Connect Place Inc. was working at the plant as a general labourer, using a rake to remove debris from an unguarded conveyor system on a cardboard baling line, the ministry says.

That’s when the rake and worker “were inadvertently pulled in” to the conveyor system, resulting in fatal injuries.

An investigation found that the gate leading to the underside of the conveyor on the cardboard bailing line was unlocked, and the cardboard bailing line was operating and had not been locked out.

The ministry says it remains unclear whether the line started automatically or was turned on by a worker.

The province found Nexcycle did not ensure that the equipment was fully stopped and secured against movement before cleaning or maintenance work was carried out, and Connect Place Inc. did not ensure that work areas were kept clear of debris that could create a hazard for the worker.

Nexcycle was fined $250,000 while Connect Place Inc. was fined $15,000, and the court also imposed a 25 per cent victim fine surcharge as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist victims of crime