Thomas Borthwick & Sons (Australia) Pty Ltd

Incident description:

On 8 November 2007 a 32 year old worker sustained injuries to his foot when he was trapped between shelving and a metal beam for about 20 minutes before being found by fellow workers.

Thomas Borthwick & Sons (Australia) Pty Ltd employed the injured worker at its Bakers Creek meatworks.

The defendant held obligations under s.28 of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995 to prevent exposure to risk from moving plant and the system of work for inspecting stock on a mobile conveyor shelving system.

The investigation findings presented to the court revealed:

• the injured worker was working alone in the chill blast room
• he left his workstation to check if some boxes were missing in an area known as the chill blast tunnel
• no malfunction was indicated on the control panel, however he believed there was a problem with the number of missing boxes
• the conveyor system was not moving but was not shut down
• he entered a door and climbed up the side of the shelving of the conveyor
• the conveyor system was not deactivated, but was not running
• while the injured worker was descending, the system re-engaged
• the injured worker's left foot was caught between a metal beam and the moving plant
• he sustained crush fracture injuries to his left foot.

Court result:

The defendant pleaded not guilty in the Mackay Industrial Magistrates Court to breaching s.24 (1) of the Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995, having failed to meet its workplace health and safety obligations. The matter went to trial on 14 March 2011. The defendant was convicted on 15 July 2011 and found guilty with no conviction recorded. Sentencing occurred on 9 September 2011.

Industrial Magistrate Mr Ron Muirhead fined the defendant $70 000 as well as ordering investigation, professional and court costs totaling $9437.90.

In deciding penalty, Industrial Magistrate Muirhead noted the defendant’s previous offences but took into account the defendant had safety measures in place which it had not disregarded, and the injured worker had been provided with safety training prior to the incident.

Considerations for prevention:

(Commentary under this heading is not part of the Court's decision.)

If workers need to access or work in proximity to moving plant or parts, clear deactivation or isolation procedures must be in place and adhered to. This applies to all workplaces, but particular attention should be paid in packing and processing where workers, on behalf of their employer, feel the need to keep processes moving.

When deciding on and implementing control measures associated with the risk of entanglement or entrapment, obligation holders should consider (where guarding is not possible), tag out systems, interlocking devices or other de-energising controls, and/or further supervision.

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

• meat retail industry
• health and safety information for manufacturing
• manufacturing
• health and Safety information for meat processing
• managing risk
• employer training options
• training staff
• Plant Code of Practice 2005
• Risk Management Code of Practice 2007
• Workplace Health and Safety Act 1995.