OSHAWA, Ont. — General Motors of Canada was fined $160,000 on Jan. 22, after a worker was hospitalized with injuries sustained from a 2,000-pound lift table falling and crushing him. On Dec. 17, 2012, a worker at the Oshawa plant was showing a co-worker how to perform a task on an automatic guided vehicle (AGV) repair crib, the Ministry of Labour (MOL) noted in a press release. The worker provided the co-worker with the preliminary steps, which involved removing screws from a ball screw assembly, but was called away. The co-worker removed every screw except one. When the worker returned, he showed the second employee how to retract the ball screw while sitting on top of the frame of the AGV, with the lift table raised. The MOL said that there was no blocking material in place between the lift table and the AGV to prevent the table from accidentally falling. The table and a pallet, which were being used to hold a car frame, fell on top of the worker, causing broken bones. An MOL investigation determined that the lift table had collapsed due to the failure of the assembly’s remaining screw. Although the workers had used a safety bar mechanism designed to hold the weight of the table, it accidentally came out of place when the table was being raised. General Motors pleaded guilty to failing to ensure that equipment was securely blocked, as required by Section 74 of Ontario Regulation 851/90.