Fatality inquiry into death of Chinese worker at CNRL site slammed by labour group

The Alberta Federation of Labour says it'sdisappointed byanoilsands company's attempts to limit a fatalityinquiry into the 2007 death of a Chinese temporary foreign worker.

Two temporary foreign workers,Genbao Ge and Hongliang Lui, were killed and four others injured when a storage tank roof collapsedon them at aCanadian Natural Resources Ltd. site near FortMcMurray.

But the inquiry into the tragedy, which begins Friday in Fort McMurray,will focus only on whether an air ambulance should have been dispatched to transportGe to the hospital.

• Energy giant CNRL derails full public inquiry into foreign workers' deaths
• Alta. Chinese workers death case delayed

GilMcGowan, the president of the Alberta Federation of Labour, accuses CNRL of tryingto derail the inquiryand with it the broader concerns for workplace safety in Alberta's oil patch.

"People should look at this inquiry and be angry,"McGowansaid Wednesday."Several successive Conservative governments had an opportunity to use this accident to learn some important lessons about how we keep workers safe in Canada and we missed out on those opportunities."

The decision to limit the inquiry to the hospital trip came after CNRL argued there was no need for an independent comprehensive inquiry into the deaths of the workers.

"Here we arenine years laterand the only issue that is going to be addressed by the inquiry is whether the ground transportation from the work site to the hospital was adequate," McGowan said."I mean that's absurd."

CNRL declined to comment about Friday's inquiry.

More accountability needed

InJune 2009,Occupational Health and Safety laid 53 charges against CNRLand the contractors thatemployed thelabourers.

All 29chargeslaid against CNRLwere stayed or postponed. The 21 charges against Sinopec Shanghai Engineering Ltd. were withdrawn.

The three remaining charges were laidagainst SSEC Canada, a subsidiary of the Chinese-owned Sinopec. The company pleaded guilty to failing to ensure the health and safety of a worker and paid $200,000 in fines and $1.3 million to the Alberta Law Foundation.

MLA and Alberta LiberalLeader David Swannsaidit's troubling that it has taken 10 years to hold the fatality inquiry.

"Our justice system has failed in this case," he said Thursday."People in Alberta who followed this for 10 years should be concerned and should be calling for moreaccountabilityofCNRLin this."

In January2017Alberta'sprofessional engineering society finedCNRLthe $10,000 maximum after it found the company engaged in unprofessional conduct.

The Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta said CNRLfailedto make sure building plans were certified by an engineer and that its contractor was competent to do the work.

AHS will testify

In anemail,Alberta Health Services spokespersonKerryWilliamsonsaid AHS was not responsible for emergency medical services inthe Wood Buffalo region at the time of the incident.

However, Williamson confirmed one EMS staff member willbe called as a witness to elaborate onthe current programs and the changes made to medical first-responder agreements with oilsands sites.

Williamson said AHS will carefully examine any recommendations the inquiry releases.

'Dying with a whimper'

With no trial to shine a light on what went wrong and the limited inquiry, McGowan said the workers' deaths were a missed opportunity to fix a system that may be broken.

McGowan said a completefatality inquiry could lead to charges being laid sooner after workplace accidents.

He also said the inquiry could lead to better safety protocolsin workplaces where contractors are involved and better protection fortemporary foreign workers.

"This whole issue is dying with a whimper,"McGowansaid. "This tiny sliver of an issue is being dealt with. People should see that tiny little sliver for what it is."

Follow David Thurton, CBC'sFort McMurraycorrespondent, onFacebook,Twitterand viaemail.