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COMPANIES operating on the North Shore faced more than $100,000 in fines for safety violations last year, according to a report from WorkSafeBC.

Fourteen North and West Vancouver work sites, almost all of them related to construction, were among 211 cited in the agency's 2009 penalty report, released Thursday.

Employers at the North Shore sites were hit with fines ranging from $1,000 to almost $30,000 for engaging in practices inspectors deemed dangerous to workers.

"It's a record dollar value, (and) it's the second highest in recent years in terms of the number of penalties imposed," said Donna Freeman, a spokeswoman for WorkSafeBC.

"We have invigorated our enforcement capacity in recent years; we have more safety officers than ever in our history."

Of the 14 businesses cited on the North Shore, nine were roofing companies that had reportedly done too little to ensure against falls.

"Every year, we take a look at where the injuries are coming from, where the most serious injuries are coming from, and we target our enforcement resources where they are needed most," said Freeman. "That typically will be in the high-risk industries like construction, like forestry. Some years it's agriculture."

The high number of roofers is partly a reflection of the fact the industry had been singled out by inspectors, said Al Johnson, director of WorkSafeBC responsible for construction.

"We're finding that, especially in steep-slope roofing, we have workers who are falling," he said. "When they do, . . . it's not a get-up-and-walk-away scenario, it's a life-changing injury -- whether it's a broken back or a broken limb or worse. So we've really focused in the last couple of years with a dedicated team of residential inspectors."

The agency now has 16 officers targeting home builders in the Lower Mainland, said Johnson.

In determining fines, the agency weighed both the seriousness of the violation and the size of the company involved.

The steepest penalty on the North Shore went to Advanced Systems Roofing and Waterproofing Ltd., which was slapped with a $27,700 fine.

It was followed by DC roofing, Inc., fined close to $23,000, and Shake n' Tile Steel Roofing Corp. which took a $14,800 hit.

In all three cases, inspectors claimed the companies had violated fall protection regulations. Under WorkSafe rules, Advanced Systems and Shake n' Tile could still contest the decision. The DC Roofing's fine is under review.

"Roofers typically, historically, have never thought they'll fall off, but they do," said Johnson.

"It's not easy to change that, but we do think we're making progress. The injury rate was lower last year than it was in 2008."

The steepest fine in the province went to oil and gas giant Canadian Natural Resources Limited for an incident in which a young worker died after falling from a platform on a drilling rig during a fire. The agency claims the company failed to analyze risks associated with the work and to implement adequate safety procedures. CNR was fined $250,000. The decision is under review.