Homicide of beer vendor employee sparks Workplace Safety and Health investigation

John Lloyd Maaba Barrion,19, has been identified as the victim of a homicide after he was injured in the early morning hours of Feb. 15, 2022, at the beer vendor he worked. (Supplied: John Emmanuel)

Manitoba Workplace Safety and Health is investigating a beer vendor business after an employee found injured on the job early Tuesday died in hospital in an incident Winnipeg police are treating as a homicide.

Family and friends said Thursday the victim, 19-year-old John Lloyd Barrion, was a recent high school graduate.

They said he had been working at the vendor at the Travelodge Hotel on Notre Dame Avenue for the past four months to save money for his future.

News of his death saddened hotel guest Greg Allen.

“It’s tragic, you know, a young guy like that trying to make a living for himself,” said Allen.

Winnipeg police have remained tight-lipped about the circumstances of the homicide and had no update to provide on the investigation on Friday.

So far officers haven’t released any information about arrests or how many suspects may be involved.

In an email, a provincial spokesperson said Manitoba Workplace Safety and Health is investigating.

The email referenced the Manitoba Workplace Safety and Health Act which requires employers to identify risks associated with violence and working alone and implement control measures, including developing and training workers on safe work procedures.

Non-compliance can result in improvement orders, work stoppages, penalties and potentially prosecution, the email said.

No one from the vendor, hotel or Wyndham, the parent organization of Travelodge, has responded to requests for comment about how many staff were working the morning of Barrion’s death but friends and family have said he was on his own for a portion of his shift.

“John Lloyd was a hard worker, he worked a lot,” said Joshua Lim, one of Barrion’s closest friends. “He told me stories, he would clock up 120 hours every two weeks sometimes. Again, that’s closing alone.”

Lim, who said he had just started working at the same beer vendor earlier this month quit over safety concerns following his friend’s death.

He said when Barrion would occasionally finish his shifts alone in the vendor, other staff on site worked the front desk of the hotel but that’s located at the opposite end of the building.

“John Lloyd’s left there by himself for almost three hours,” Lim said.

Requiring someone to work alone or in isolation isn’t illegal.

Randy Pokrant, a safety consultant with the security company Protelec, also pointed to requirements under the Workplace Safety and Health Act which states when employees are working alone or in isolation their employer must identify risks and hazards of the job, take steps to eliminate or reduce them and make sure there’s an effective communication system in place.

“It’s really about through those consistent reliable check-ins that we’re going to ensure that timely help can be provided to someone who potentially is at risk,” Pokrant said.

Allen, who’s from Leaf Rapids, arrived at the hotel after Barrion was killed.

He said he hopes something similar can be prevented from happening again.

“The only sad thing is this is a pretty rough area and maybe they should have two staff, not somebody left there by themselves,” he said.

A vigil for John Lloyd Barrion is being held Saturday at 3 p.m. outside the hotel in the 1400 block of Notre Dame Ave. Organizers said the public is welcome to attend.