Onesteel Recycling Pty Ltd

Incident description:

On 7 October 2009 a 56 year old female worker sustained fatal injuries while working as a sweeper at a scrap metal yard.

The court acknowledged Onesteel Recycling Pty Ltd was the employer of the worker. It also acknowledged the worker sustained her fatal crush injuries as a result of inadequacies in inappropriate work procedures.

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

The investigation findings presented to the court revealed:

• Trucks at the workplace were moving around the site being loaded with scrap metal at three loading stations before proceeding to a weighbridge.
• At each station an excavator loaded metal in the truck.
• Each station had a worker performing the role of sweeper – clearing metal away from the underside of trucks.
• Truck 5 proceeded from the waiting area to Station 1. The excavator operator applied the excavator horn to signal the truck to stop in the correct position. The worker was standing adjacent to the truck in a safety zone.
• The excavator completed partial loading of the truck, and radioed the worker to advise she could proceed to sweep the truck.
• The worker walked the 26 metres to the truck and proceeded to sweep the truck.
• The truck drove from Station 1 to Station 2. The left side of the truck's trailer ran over the worker, who was in the process of sweeping.
• The worker sustained fatal crush injuries.

The investigation findings further revealed:

• All operators and drivers (17 workers) participated in a pre-start tool box/induction meeting prior to commencing duties. Specifically they were told about the need to follow ground staffs' directions, and (the drivers in particular) to be aware of the sweepers sweeping around trucks.
• The defendant did not have any documented risk assessments or safe systems of work in place at the Mackay site for the specific activities undertaken by sweepers and truck drivers during export ship loading.
• The defendant had no radio transmitting protocols in place nor was there any evidence of training in the use of radios at this workplace prior to the incident.
• The systems of work at the site did not involve the isolation of moving items of plant; namely trucks.

Court result:

The defendant pleaded guilty in the Brisbane Industrial Magistrates Court on 29 July 2010 to 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 no conviction recorded.

Industrial Magistrate Ms Sheryl Cornack fined the defendant $120 000 as well as ordering costs totalling $5396.20.

In reaching a decision the Industrial Magistrate acknowledged the defendant failed to have an adequate system for this type of work activity.

In deciding the penalty imposed Industrial Magistrate Cornack took into account the defendant had not been prosecuted previously for any workplace health and safety breach, cooperated with the investigation and entered an early plea of guilty.

Considerations for prevention:

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

Risk management involves 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 and implementing control measures associated with the risk of moving plant, obligation holders should consider isolating or excluding of the item of plant from the risk of coming into contact with other persons.

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

• Retail and wholesale
• Health and safety information for retail and wholesale
• Managing risk
• Employer training options
• Training staff
• Risk Management Code of Practice 2007
• Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995.