Employee pinned to the ground in workplace safety accident

A female worker was injured in a workplace accident when a lifting device fell from the back of a truck and onto her.

The incident 


The incident occurred when a driver was transporting goods to a customer’s premises. An employee of the customer was using a lifting device under the driver’s instructions, when an object began to roll backwards off the truck and pinned the employee to the ground. The employee suffered serious injuries including broken ribs, a fractured skull and spinal injuries.

The court heard that the driver had not received training in the use of the lifting device. The company was fined $60,000 and ordered to pay costs of $7673. Worksafe WA Commissioner Lex McCulloch said that this case should remind companies how important it is to train employees on safe machine operation.

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Source: Safe to Work

Unsafe excavation work at construction site leads to fine

A construction company has been ordered to pay over £16,000 for unsafe excavation work at a construction site.

The facts

The excavation, made to connect a home to a sewer, went down three metres deep into totally unsupported soft clay. The company had failed to adequately plan the excavation and workers were put in danger by unsupported sidewalls that could have collapsed. A witness notified HSE and explained that they had seen someone climbing from the excavation, as well as tools and equipment at the bottom. Although the excavation did not collapse and there were no injuries, workers could have been killed if the clay sidewalls gave way.

Excavation safety

Every year, workers are seriously injured or killed while working in excavations. The risks in excavation work include:
- Being buried in a collapsed excavation
- Material falling into the excavation
- People or plant falling into the excavation

An employer's legal responsibilities

An employer must prevent danger to workers in or near excavations. A competent person should inspect all excavation supports at the commencement of the work shift and at other times. Work should not start until the excavation is safe.

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Source: The Health and Safety Executive

Workplace bullying policy could become part of the federal workplace system

Workplace bullying policy could become part of the federal workplace system for the first time, if Workplace Relations Minister Bill Shorten's plan is successful.

Under the plan, bullied workers are allowed to take cases directly to the Fair Work Commission and have them listed within 2 weeks. Fines for bullies could be up to $33,000. Bill Shorten said the move could provide workers and their employers with a more timely and affordable method of resolving workplace bullying matters.

Key changes under the proposal include:

- A national definition of bullying and a national training system would be established.
- An investigation by police or state health and safety regulators would no longer be required before a worker could tackle a conflict.
- Safeguards would be implemented to prevent vexatious claims.

The legal position of an employer

Employers are responsible for helping to prevent bullying and harassing behaviour in the workplace. It is in their interests to make it clear to everyone that such behaviour will not be tolerated. The costs to the business may include poor employee relations, low morale, inefficiency and potentially the loss of staff. Training all staff about the standards of behaviour expected can make it easier for all individuals to be fully aware of their responsibilities to others.

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Source: The Herald Sun

Manufacturing company cited for workplace safety hazards

A manufacturer of roof insulation panels is facing $123,000 in fines, following an Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspection at the firm’s production plant.

The company was cited for various hazards, which included deficiencies in the plant's emergency response, confined space and hazardous energy control programs, lack of personal protective equipment, and fall and respirator hazards.

The plant’s process safety management program also had deficiencies, such as missing process safety information and failing to develop and implement safe work practices.

Robert Kulick, OSHA's regional administrator in New York said:
"One method of enhancing workers' safety is for an employer to develop and maintain an effective illness and injury prevention program in which management and employees work together to identify and prevent hazardous conditions."

Source: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration

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Worker receives compensation for mental health problems following workplace death of colleague

A cold storage company was ordered to pay over $325,000 in compensation to a worker who suffered post-traumatic stress disorder and depression after the death of a colleague.

The fatal accident occurred when the worker was driving a loaded forklift at a factory and a co-worker walked in front of it, and pallets loaded on the forklift fell on him.

WorkSafe argued in the County Court that the company’s negligence was to blame for the incident. An investigation found that the company did not have an adequate traffic management system at the time.

The company was ordered to pay $326,047 for medical expenses, past losses and another year of future loss, including superannuation.

Source: Hobsons Bay Weekly

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Workplace safety breaches by manufacturing company led to workplace death

A textile manufacturer was ordered to pay over £115,000 for workplace safety breaches that led to the death of a worker.

The deceased, a 61-year-old forklift truck operator, was crushed and killed by a falling stack of rag bales. The workplace accident occurred at the firm’s warehouse, when the top two bales, which weighed more than 300kg, struck the worker on the head.

An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive found that the manufacturing company had stacked the rag bales unsafely and had failed to put effective measures in place to control the pedestrian activities around the warehouse.

Health and Safety Exectuive inspector Geoff Fletcher said:
"This tragic incident could have been avoided had [the company] taken its duty of care toward its employees sufficiently seriously. The sad consequence of the company's failures is an unnecessary loss of life and the devastating impact this has had on [the worker’s] partner, family and friends.”

Source: http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2013/rnn-yh-3713.htm

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Workplace death at factory after machine falls from forklift

A metal manufacturer has been sentenced after an employee was killed when a machine weighing half-a-tonne fell from a forklift truck.

The 25-year-old was walking alongside the forklift when the machine fell and struck him on the head. The company had been moving machines into a bigger workshop at the factory. During one move, a machine became unstable and fell, resulting in the worker’s death.

The company had only recently taken over the factory and a health and safety audit had not been carried out. The company had not planned the work in advance so that the machine could be moved safely.

The firm, which went into administration in 2011, was found guilty because it failed to ensure the safety of its employees. The company received a nominal fine of £1.

Source: The Health and Safety Executive

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Electrical safety hazards lead to $65,000 fine for construction contracting company

A construction and services contracting company was fined $65,000 and ordered to pay nearly $8000 in costs following an incident in which a street light came too close to high-voltage power lines.

The company was contracted to install two assembled streetlights. A crane was hoisting one of the streetlights into place, and the operator believed the power line was not in service. However the power line was live and the streetlight swung too close, causing a flashover.

The electricity travelled through the streetlight and the crane before entering the earth, causing one of the crane’s tyres to blow out. The incident caused damage to pipework. Fortunately there were no injuries, however there was a high potential for serious injury or death from electrocution or explosion.

The company had failed to perform an adequate pre-job onsite inspection, and they did not test the line before starting work or adhere to safe working distances. The company pleaded guilty to failing to provide a safe workplace.

WorkSafe WA Commissioner Lex McCulloch said: “Working in the vicinity of power lines is extremely hazardous, and it is vital that every possible measure is taken to ensure the safety of the job, especially in ensuring that everyone on the site is fully briefed on the issues.”

For more information on this workplace safety news, visit: Department of Commerce - WA

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$460,000 in proposed penalties for company that exposed workers to lead

A company is facing nearly $460,000 in penalties from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, after being cited with 38 alleged violations. The violations, including 14 willful and 11 repeat, were found at bridge work sites, where workers were exposed to lead and other safety and health hazards while performing abrasive blasting and repainting projects.

MaryAnn Garrahan, OSHA regional administrator said:
"Employers have a legal responsibility to provide workers with safe and healthful workplaces. Anything less is unacceptable."

The willful violations include failing to properly protect workers from exposure to lead and failing to provide fall protection.

The repeat violations include:
• A lack of warning signs posted in lead work areas
• Failing to provide medical evaluations and fit tests for respirator users
• Failing to notify employees of the results of lead monitoring

Eleven serious violations were cited for:
• Allowing workers to have and/or consume food in the area where lead exposure was above the permissible level
• Not ensuring workers wore respirators while blasting with glass media or when exposed to lead in excess of permissible limits.
• Failing to provide personal protective equipment for workers when blasting

Source: The Occupational Safety and Health Administration

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New study on social media in the workplace

A new international study suggests that colleagues posting embarrassing photos of one another on social media sites is contributing to a widespread breakdown of workplace privacy.

Co-workers using social media sites to make unwanted romantic advances is also said to be blurring the distinction between work and home life.

The findings are based on surveys with 4000 social media users in 10 countries, and were published by internet security firm AVG Technologies.

"This study highlights the need for a combination of greater education around social media, alongside increased attention and care by both employees and employers to their social media etiquette at work," the company said.

Key findings among Australian respondents include:
• 6/10 said social media sites have eroded their expectation of privacy at work
• 1/10 said they have had embarrassing photos or videos taken at a work event and uploaded on to social media sites
• 9/10 believed sending unpleasant or defamatory remarks to or about a colleague using digital communications constituted cyber-bullying
• Employees raised concerns about managers discovering embarrassing or incriminating information on social media sites

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Source: The Australian and Smart Company

Mining giant convicted over worker's death

A mining giant has been found guilty of failing to protect the safety of a worker who was crushed to death by a scissor lift in a workshop.

The court found that the mining company had failed to provide instruction and supervision, and had failed to implement and enforce a suitable job hazard assessment, which led to the worker’s death in 2008. The company faces penalties of up to $400,000, with sentencing scheduled for March 19.

In early 2009, the company had its fifth fatality in nine months at its iron ore operations in a WA region and was forced to acknowledge change was needed.

“Of course, no fatality is ever acceptable, and senior management took that commitment extremely seriously and made a number of improvements across the business in this regard” The company commented in a statement.

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Source: The West Australian

Workers injured in wall collapse at building site

Two men in their twenties were hospitalised last week, after a wall collapsed onto them at a building site.

The men were working to smooth off concrete on the wall when a rock supported by the wall collapsed. The Metropolitan Fire Brigade attended the accident and had to winch one of the men out of the rubble using a crane. One of the workers suffered an injured hip, while the other worker suffered an injured wrist.

WorkSafe Victoria issued a prohibition notice on the site, preventing any further work until an engineer assessed the site.

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Source: The Age