Worker struck by falling merchandise at Bradford Home Depot in 2013

BRADFORD - Home Depot has been fined $90,000 after a worker was injured by falling merchandise last year at the company's Bradford store.

The fine was imposed Tuesday in a Barrie court following a Ministry of Labour investigation into the accident which took place on April 27 2013.

The ministry says a worker was preparing to receive a load of merchandise from a trailer backed into the receiving area of the Holland Street West store and was struck by a pallet of patio doors which were knocked over by a door on the loading bay. The pallet fell about 11 feet, according to the ministry, and the worker suffer injuries to the head, resulting in paralysis and fractures.

Home Depot of Canada Inc. pleaded guilty to failing as an employer to ensure that the measures and procedures prescribed by law were carried out in the workplace - in this case, that a pallet loaded with patio doors was placed and/or stored in a position that allowed it to tip when the load made contact with the bay door.

The company was fined $90,000 by Justice of the Peace Brian O. Norton.

In addition to the fine, the court 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.

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Worker struck by falling merchandise at Bradford Home Depot in 2013