Konstrukteur Pty Ltd, a property maintenance and renovation company, has been convicted following an incident that resulted in a contractor sustaining serious, life-threatening injuries. The company was charged with breaches of s.23(1) of the OHS Act and r327(1)(a) of the OHS Regulations.
Just two days into a roof rectification project at a Campbellfield factory a Konstrukteur supervisor and the contractor were using an elevated work platform to access the roof and replace metal roof sheets. The task involved both the supervisor and the contractor standing to the left of an 8.8 metre long corrugated metal roof sheet before both workers would grab a corner of the roof sheet from the farthest corner and drag it aside. They would have the new sheet next to the old one to immediately replace over the void created by the removal of the damaged roof sheet. In the process of removing one of the metal sheets the contractor fell 5.5m through the roof onto the concrete floor inside the factory.
The contractor was transported to hospital and put on life support. As a result of the fall, the contractor sustained serious injuries, including, damage to his spine and ribs, facial fractures, a fractured wrist, lung injuries, and severe brain damage. He now requires full-time care, is wheelchair bound, struggles to speak, and has cognitive issues.
The WorkSafe investigation found that there was no Safe Work Method Statement (SWMS) for the task being undertaken. Konstrukteur produced a generic SWMS two days later. The SWMS was not site specific, none of the workers had been inducted into SWMS, there was no mention of harnesses as a fall from height control measure, and the site supervisor was not aware of the SWMS. In practical terms the SWMS was worthless. None of the workers on site had been provided with Safe Working at Height training.
In sentencing Konstrukteur the Court noted that the risk was notorious and grave. There were two harnesses on site at the time of the incident but no system in place to ensure that they were utilised – no enforcement, no supervision and no mandate. The Court also noted that the catastrophic harm, both physical and psychological, caused to the contractor and his family is significant.
At the time of the incident the maximum applicable penalty for a breach of s.23 of the OHS Act (duties of employers to other persons) was $1.7M. Konstrukteur Pty Ltd was sentenced to pay a fine of $100,000.
Read more: Prosecution Result Summaries and Enforceable Undertakings | WorkSafe Victoria