A Cornwall furniture manufacturer has been fined $50,000 after a worker suffered critical injuries on an unguarded machine at its Loyalist Street plant. Ridgewood Industries Ltd. was sentenced on July 23, 2026, following a guilty plea under Ontario’s workplace safety laws.
The incident happened on February 20, 2025, when an employee tried to clear a jammed board from a sizing and edge banding machine. A section of protective fencing had been removed, leaving a dangerous pinch point exposed while the equipment was still running. The worker’s hand or arm was caught between the top and bottom cone rotators.
An investigation by the Ministry of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development found the company failed to guard the machine as required by Ontario Regulation 851. Ridgewood pleaded guilty on June 16, 2026, to violating the Occupational Health and Safety Act and was ordered to pay an additional $12,500 victim fine surcharge.
Ridgewood Industries was a longtime fixture in Cornwall, producing ready-to-assemble furniture for more than 55 years. However, its parent company Dorel Industries announced the plant’s closure on June 30, 2025, costing about 300 local jobs. The closure was attributed to economic pressures, including uncertainty over U.S. tariffs.
The case was heard before Justice of the Peace Stephen Dibblee. The fine highlights ongoing enforcement of safety standards even as the facility wound down operations. Workplace safety advocates note that machine guarding violations remain among the most commonly prosecuted offences in Ontario’s industrial sector.
