Riviera Marine (Int) Pty Ltd

Incident description:

On 26 June 2008 a worker sustained serious injuries when he fell approximately 1.8 meters after stepping onto an unsecured 'marlin board' that was in the process of being attached to the rear of a boat.

The court acknowledged Riviera Marine (Int) Pty Ltd employed the injured worker.

The court found the defendant held obligations under s.28(1) of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995 being a person conducting a business or undertaking.

The investigation findings presented to the court alleged workers installing the board had temporarily moved away to obtain tools and equipment. Prior to doing so they used a crane and slings to maneuver the board into position and to support it during installation. It was not contemplated, or expected, that the crane supporting arrangement was to provide a suitable basis for workers to walk on or traverse the unattached marlin board.

The investigation findings presented to the court revealed:

• have safety systems in place at its workplace and did have fulltime safety personnel
• not undertake a risk assessment of the particular activity of attaching the marlin board
• not develop a work process for the installation of the 'marlin board' and simply relied on workers to undertake the task in a safe manner.

Court result:

The matter proceeded pursuant to section 142A of the Justices Act 1886 being dealt with ex-parte in the Southport Industrial Magistrates Court on 3 July 2009. The defendant was charged with breaching s.24(1) of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995, having failed to meet its workplace health and safety obligations and was sentenced with a conviction recorded.

Industrial Magistrate Mr Brian Kucks ordered the defendant pay a penalty of $40,000 as well as investigation and court costs totaling $2371.70.

In deciding the penalty imposed Industrial Magistrate Mr Brian Kucks took into account the defendant had been prosecuted on three previous occasions for breaches under the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995.

Considerations for prevention:

When working in the manufacturing industry where there is exposure to risks from working at heights, obligation holders should apply a risk management approach to ensure the selection of suitable control measures.

Risk management involves identifying the hazards, evaluating the consequences and likelihood of harm that may result from the hazard, deciding on and implementing control measures to prevent or minimise the level of the risk from the hazard and monitoring the effectiveness of the control measures to ensure they remain working correctly.

When deciding on and implementing control measures associated with the risk of falling from unstable work platforms, obligation holders should consider implementing an exclusion zone and warning signs to prevent access by workers whilst platforms are being firmly secured to the structure.

Visit the Workplace Health and Safety Queensland website for more information on:

• health and safety information for manufacturing
• crane and hoist licensing requirements
• guide for preventing slips, trips and falls
• risk management
• implementing controls or evaluating or monitoring
• Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995
• Risk Management Code of Practice 2007.