A worker who survived a 2009 scaffolding collapse that killed four people and seriously injured another said his project manager asked him to lie about their safety training, a court heard Tuesday.

Vadim Kazenelson faces four counts of criminal negligence causing death and one count of criminal negligence causing bodily harm. He has pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

Kazenelson was among a crew of workers on Christmas Eve doing repairs on the balconies of a high-rise building using scaffolding that was meant to support two people.

Four migrant workers from Latvia, Uzbekistan and Ukraine plunged to their death on Dec. 24, 2009. A fifth worker survived, but was seriously injured, and a sixth worker, Shohruh Tojiddinov, was not hurt. He was the only one properly wearing a full-body safety harness.

On Tuesday, Tojiddinov told the court through a Russian translator that Kazenelson asked him to tell authorities that he gave lessons about safety every Monday.

He also told the court that he was asked to lie to the Ontario Ministry of Labour about the events leading up to the scaffolding collapse.

"Vadim told me to tell them he was on the balcony when the stage broke," said Tojiddinov, the Crown's key witness.

But the legitimacy of Tojiddonov's testimony was questioned by Kazenelson's defense lawyer.

At one point during cross-examination, Tojiddinov went back on his recollection of that day when the swing stage split in two.

The trial is expected to resume on Wednesday.

The company involved in the case, Metron Construction Corp., has pleaded guilty to criminal negligence causing death and was fined $750,000 plus a victim surcharge.

The company that supplied the swing stage, Swing N Scaff Inc., was also fined. They paid $350,000 for failing to ensure the platform was in good condition.

With a report from CTV Toronto's Ashley Rowe