Eight tragic and preventable deaths since mid-2022 around Australia, with five of those deaths in just the last two years, are not just bad luck. Systemic problems in identifying and managing hazards have resulted in workers operating in close proximity to heavy machinery with inadequate protection, missing machinery guards, and exposed to entanglement risks that should have been fixed decades ago.
The Transport Workers Union (TWU) and the Australian Workers Union (AWU) are drawing a line in the sand and calling on regulators to hold the company to account.
The TWU alleges multiple other hazards have also been identified during inspections at Cleanaway sites, including biological hazards, including broken blood samples, used syringes and spilt urine samples, blocked fire exits and inadequate emergency procedures. TWU national secretary Michael Kaine said the alleged conditions were “deplorable”.
The TWU has also launched a case in the Industrial Relations Commission over Cleanaway’s alleged failure in some cases to allow union officials to conduct site safety inspections.
Nick Blackford, the AWU Victoria OHS Director added "Vulnerable workers are being put in dangerous jobs without proper training or protection and punished when they speak up. Every worker has the right to go home at the end of their shift. The AWU will stand with anyone prepared to fight for that right.”
In response to the multiple deaths Cleanaway’s shareholders and proxy advisers made their concerns about the company’s safety performance clear at the 2025 AGM, resulting in executive short-term bonuses being reduced by 30%, cutting CEO and managing director Mark Schubert’s bonus, for example, by around $500,000. But Schubert still took home $4.2 million for the year, including cash bonuses and equity rights, calling into question whether his remuneration accords with community expectations.
The company also reported to shareholders that it was on track to deliver underlying earnings for the year within its previously guided range of $470 million to $500 million.
Cleanaway Enterprise Agreement negotiations begin later this year and the message from workers on site is clear – if Cleanaway doesn’t fix their safety culture immediately the workers will go on strike. If a company as big as Cleanaway can’t keep its workers safe, those workers are going to do what it takes to keep themselves safe.