Released on September 17, 2010
Jeffrey Wilcocks has pleaded guilty to one charge under Saskatchewan's Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) regulations and been fined a total of $8,400.
Wilcocks was charged after a worker, Shawn Parker, was fatally electrocuted while working on the Wilcocks' farm near Southey on December 17, 2007.
Parker was part of a crew contracted by Wilcocks to pour and level a concrete floor in a shop on the Wilcocks' farm.
Wilcocks pleaded guilty to:
- contravening section 459(C) of the regulations for failure to ensure that every exposed metal part of portable electrical equipment was supplied through a class A ground fault circuit interrupter.
Two additional charges against Wilcocks under the OHS regulations were stayed in court. Also, all three charges against Donna Wilcocks were stayed by the Crown.
Four charges against the employer, Clint Farnham, doing business as Rock Hard Concrete Finishers, were adjourned to September 20, 2010, in connection with this incident.
There have now been 22 convictions under OHS legislation this year, compared to 11 in 2009/10. Also, a total of 35 prosecutions have been initiated, three more than all of last year.
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For more information, contact:
Bill Stovin
Labour Relations and Workplace Safety
Regina
Phone: 306-787-0926