A leading supplier of construction materials has been recently fined over $26,000 by an Industrial Magistrate over a workplace incident that resulted in serious leg injuries to an employee.
Boral Resources (SA) Limited pleaded guilty in failing to provide a safe system of work and to maintain plant in a safe condition, after an incident at the company's Lenwood Quarry at Stonyfell in August 2007.
A male employee was assigned the task of removing the picks (or teeth) from an excavator bucket. When they proved difficult to move, he used a hardened steel sledgehammer, which caused shards of metal to splinter from the pick and enter the employee's upper leg.
The court heard that:
the employer failed to provide an appropriate tool to eliminate the risk of splintering metal
there was no adquate hazard identification or risk analysis for the task
there was no safe work procedure devised for the task
the employee should have been told of the risks of such a task
This incident highlights the need to factor safety into all tasks no matter how familiar or minor they may seem
Has your business checked all workplace tasks for adequate safety?
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