In this December 2008 case in the Victorian County Court, an employer company and its director have both been convicted and fined $100,000.00 each after a worker suffered fatal injuries in an accident in Epping, Victoria in August 2006.
This prosecution represents the first occasion on which a company director has been fined under Victoria's Occupational Health & Safety Act 2004. The fine awarded by the Court was also the highest penalty every imposed on an individual under that legislation in Victoria.
Manumatic Industries Pty Ltd manufactures motor vehicle exhausts in Victoria. As part of its operations, the employer used a pipe bending machine. A worker by the name of Frank Grima was working in the immediate vicinity of that machine installing several drip trays under it to catch leaking oil. Without warning to Mr Grimer, the machine was inadvertently turned on by a fellow employee. Mr Grima was then struck in the head by the machine's working parts, causing him to suffer fatal injuries.
Investigations by the Victorian WorkCover Authority revealed that a laser light curtain, which may have otherwise prevented the machine from being turned on by the co-worker, was not correctly positioned. The Court was also told that there was no system or procedure in place to prevent the machine from being started if people were working in its immediate vicinity.
The company's managing director, Stanley Guthrie was directly involved in the day-to-day operations of the company. Both he and the company each pleaded guilty to breaches of ss21(1) and (2) of the Occupational Health & Safety Act 2004.
In handing down judgement, Her Honour Judge Liz Gaynor described the employer and its managing director as "utterly negligent" in failing to have appropriate safety systems in place.
The size of the penalty awarded to the employer's managing director highlights the importance for directors of companies employing workers to take active steps to ensure their company's workplaces are safe and without risk of injury to their employees.
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