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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OSHA cites company with 5 violations after worker is struck by forklift

OSHA cited a firm with five safety violations after a worker was injured when struck by a forklift. The complaint inspection has resulted in proposed penalties of $89,000.

"Employers are responsible for ensuring workers are properly trained in the operation of equipment and that equipment, such as forklifts, are maintained in good working order," said Kim Nelson, area director for OSHA in Toledo.

A willful violation was cited for failing to remove unsafe forklifts from service. Three serious violations were cited for failing to complete forklift inspections, retrain workers in forklift operations following an incident where an injury occurred and operate a forklift in a safe manner.

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Source: http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=NEWS_RELEASES&p_id=23520

Forklift failures lead to fine for company that supplies stones

A company has been fined for failing to keep a forklift truck in good working order, which posed a danger to workers.

The company supplies stone in flexible large bags that hold around a tonne. HSE found that a forklift truck had not been maintained and that two sets of bearings holding the forks in line had collapsed.

As the forks were lowered, they could jam on the mast and then fall when dislodged, putting employees working nearby at risk of serious injury.

HSE found the forklift had been repaired on many occasions in the previous year but all the work had been reactive. The company's maintenance regime was to repair in response to breakdowns.

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Source: http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2013/rnn-yh-00513.htm

Concrete company prosecuted after worker hit by forklift truck

A concrete firm has been prosecuted after a worker suffered serious leg injuries when he was hit by a forklift truck.

The 38-year-old was responsible for removing excess concrete from moulds at a factory. He was putting concrete in a bucket and then onto the prongs of the forklift, when he was struck by the vehicle.

He suffered multiple foot fractures, needed four screws in his broken ankle and also hurt his knee. The firm was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,897.

The Health and Safety Executive found there was a written instruction in the factory stating the bucket should be not be placed directly on the forks. This had not been translated into Polish for the benefit of the migrant labour the company employed, like the injured worker.

HSE inspector Katharine Walker said: "The company had allowed an unsafe custom and practice to develop. There was no effective segregation of vehicles and pedestrians and the means of transporting the waste concrete was bound to bring the two into contact.”

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Source: http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2012/rnn-wm-17212.htm?eban=rss-