Serious contraventions of Part II — the Canada Labour Code’s health and safety provisions — can be prosecuted, separately from and in addition to the administrative monetary penalty regime. The maximum penalties depend on how the case is prosecuted and how serious the contravention was: a general offence carries a fine of up to $100,000 on summary conviction, or up to $1,000,000 and/or up to two years’ imprisonment on indictment. A wilful contravention known to be likely to cause death or serious injury carries the same maximums: up to $1,000,000 and/or up to two years’ imprisonment. Due diligence is a defence for most provisions, and a prosecution requires the consent of the Minister of Labour.

The Labour Program has published its own track record: of the 45 cases where charges were laid under Part II between 2010 and May 2021, 40 resulted in a guilty plea or conviction — an 89% figure, as ESDC states it, bounded to that specific period and case set rather than a general conviction rate.

Real, published prosecutions illustrate what these maximums look like in practice:

Rogers Communications Canada Inc. — a contracted tower worker fell approximately 120 metres while installing the final antenna on a telecommunications tower in January 2022. Rogers pleaded guilty on October 29, 2025 to failing to provide a fall-protection system, and the Ontario Court of Justice ordered a $260,000 fine.
Logistec Arrimage/Stevedoring (Ontario) Inc. — pleaded guilty October 9, 2025, on three counts following a fatality at the Port of Johnstown in January 2023; fined $300,000 by the Ontario Court of Justice.
Ken Johnson Trucking Ltd. — pleaded guilty in 2014 to failing to develop and implement a hazard prevention program; sentenced to a $125,000 fine.

These are real, named cases, not a statistical sample — they illustrate the range of outcomes rather than an average or a typical fine.

This is general information, not legal advice; confirm current maximum penalties and any more recent prosecutions at the source before relying on them.

Related notes

The Internal Responsibility System and the General Duty (CLC Part II) — CLC Part II replaces the Ontario OHSA for federal employers and rests on the internal responsibility system — shared employer and employee responsibility for health and safety, anchored by the employer's general duty to protect every employee and a fixed hierarchy for preventing hazards.

The Hazard Prevention Program (CLC Part II) — Federal employers must develop, implement, and monitor a hazard prevention program sized to their workplace and its hazards, built in consultation with the health and safety committee or representative — and a workplace-specific version where the general program doesn't cover a hazard unique to that location.

Hazardous Occurrence Investigation and Reporting (CLC Part II) — Federal employers investigate every accident, occupational disease, and hazardous occurrence, report the serious ones by phone within 24 hours and in writing within 14 days, and file an annual report to the Labour Program even in a year with zero incidents.

Administrative Monetary Penalties (Part IV): Framework and Baseline Schedule — Part IV of the Canada Labour Code sets administrative monetary penalties for designated violations, classified Type A through Type E and scaled by employer size, with a repeat-violation multiplier and a $250,000 statutory cap per penalty.

Federal Labour Program Enforcement Tools (CLC) — The federal Labour Program enforces the Canada Labour Code along a compliance continuum — education, compliance orders, payment orders for unpaid wages, administrative monetary penalties, and prosecution for serious cases — with the statutory obligation and the enforcement consequence always kept as separate, separately sourced claims.

Real Federal AMP Enforcement Examples — Published administrative monetary penalty examples from the Labour Program's public-naming page show the AMP grid in practice, from a single $36,000 notice to $87,000 for a failure to give reasonable assistance — but the list ages: names are removed roughly two years after payment and confirmed compliance.

Federal vs. Ontario Jurisdiction: The Employment-Law "Instead Of" Rule — A federally regulated employer follows the Canada Labour Code and related federal statutes in place of Ontario employment law, not on top of it — the federal regime replaces the ESA, OHSA, Human Rights Code, AODA and Pay Equity Act rather than adding to them.