WHITBY, Ont. -- A meat processing plant in Ajax, Ont., has been fined more than $82,000 for workplace accidents that caused two employees to partially lose their hands.
An Ontario court justice handed down the fines on Thursday to D&S Meat Products Ltd., which operates as Elite Meats.
The first incident took place in 2014 when a worker lost part of a hand while trying to load frozen blocks of meat into a grinder machine.
A Ministry of Labour investigation found that the company had not installed a guard to prevent access to dangerous parts of the machine.
The ministry also found the company failed to establish safety protocols or train a worker on how to safely operate part of a grinder, resulting in that staff member losing part of a hand in a separate incident in 2015.
The company pleaded guilty to offences under the Occupational Health and Safety Act and will pay $82,500 in fines.
