An employer has successfully defended a charge of failing to report an accident to the WSIB within the timeframe permitted by law. Two other charges relating to non-reporting of accidents were withdrawn by the WSIB. The case involved an employee who was injured while working outside the province. The evidence before the Court established that the worker had reported that he sought healthcare as a result of his accident to the employer’s human resources manager.
The employer’s human resources manager testified that she remembered receiving the call from the worker and believed that she took steps to fax the Form 7 (WSIB accident report) to the WSIB. She remembered completing the Form 7 and in accordance with her usual practice placed a copy in the employee’s file. There was no fax confirmation or any other documentary evidence before the Court which showed that the fax was actually sent. When the WSIB called about the claim several months later, the Human Resources Manager testified that she found the completed Form 7 in the employee’s file and she immediately provided the Form 7 to the WSIB.
The Human Resources Manager testified that she was familiar with WSIB reporting procedures, had developed a system for ensuring that accidents were reported to the WSIB and remembered taking specific steps to follow that reporting system with respect to the employee in question.
The Court acquitted the Defendant of the charge before the Court. It held that the evidence of the human resources manager was credible and as a result the WSIB had not met the burden of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that the Form 7 was not filed on time. The employer was defended by Ryan Conlin of Stringer LLP.
