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Gas, lungs, ladders, fruit picking and concrete pumping – latest workplace incidents

The media on 11 March 2010 was reporting the discovery of a the body of a hotel worker in a beer cellar of a Victorian hotel. WorkSafe Victoria is investigating the possibility of carbon dioxide.

As with so many cases of confined spaces, a second man was lucky to be alive after venturing into the cellar to check on the hotel worker. The police report suggested that the second man was making a delivery to the hotel.

At such an early stage in the investigation and with so little detail,it is hard to say more than what WorkSafe’s Stan Krpan said in a media release this afternoon:

“With or without a gas leak or chemical exposure, limited means of entry and exit, poor air circulation, and working in confined spaces, is risky. Continue reading “Gas, lungs, ladders, fruit picking and concrete pumping – latest workplace incidents”

Television exposé of children at risk on roof insulation worksite

On 16 February 2010, I was interviewed by Channel 7 television in Melbourne over 20 minutes of footage they had received that showed unacceptable work practices at a domestic site in Cranbourne.

Emails from friends told me that my words and face were used in promotional ads by the TV program. At the time of writing this, I have not seen the ads and I have no idea what words of mine they will use in the program to be broadcast this evening, 17 February 2010. [Video now available online]

Today Tonight has video of two men who are installing fibreglass insulation into a domestic roof space after having made an entry by removing some roof tiles. The men were employed to undertake the work by a company that has registered with the Australian Government for the task. The workers are equipped with face masks, gloves and coveralls. No fall protection was provided. Continue reading “Television exposé of children at risk on roof insulation worksite”

Recent workplace incidents

Below is a quick summary of some workplace incidents that have occured in Australia. Often these sorts of incidents can be useful in reinforcing safe work practices to employees and clients.

The Metropolitan Ambulance Service in Victoria reports the following work-related incidents

Angle Grinder Blade

“…(a) 55 year old man… told us he’d been working with an angle grinder when the blade snapped off and hit him in the left side of his chest. The wound to his upper chest was quite deep but thankfully a towel had been used to slow the bleeding before we arrived.” Continue reading “Recent workplace incidents”

Vehicle crane safety alert

The Queensland Government has issued a safety alert of the purchasing and use of vehicle-based loading cranes (VLC). The alert has originated from two deaths where the operator of the cranes were struck by the booms.

The safety advice offered by the government is sound – follow manufacturer’s instructions, provide suitable training – but it focusses on the lower order of control methods without asking the hard question – whether the design of such a crane is unsafe?

From the information in the alert it seems peculiar that such a crane should be on sale at all. Continue reading “Vehicle crane safety alert”

Biomarkers for musculoskeletal disorders

Slips, trips and falls are often the neglected “bastard son” of occupational health and safety but the can cripple and can, literally cost an arm or a leg.

The traditional approach to control these hazards have been to make the working environment safer by mopping up spilled liquids, for instance, or be using a piece of equipment such as a stepladder, or in the long-term or in the beginning of a project, to design out hazards.

We also know that musculoskeletal disorders (MSD) make occur suddenly, and dramatically and painfully, but one’s body has accumulated weaknesses over time. The UK’s Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has released a research report that indicates a new approach to MSDs or at least a start. Continue reading “Biomarkers for musculoskeletal disorders”

Migrant workers’ deaths on Christmas Eve

According to the Toronto Police, four workers died on December 24 2009 when the swing stage they were working on collapsed. A fifth man, Dilshod Marupov, is in hospital.

Media reports have identified the five workers as migrant workers and although the swing stage was at the thirteenth floor of an apartment complex, no-one was wearing safety harnesses. Continue reading “Migrant workers’ deaths on Christmas Eve”

Serious injuries can occur regardless of good OHS intentions

SafeWork South Australia has illustrated a situation that is common in Australian workplaces – no matter how hard one tries to ensure safety, things can still go wrong. In a court case on 20 November 2009, four farm operators were fined over a foreseeable incident that cost a 20-year-old the sight in one eye as well a fractured skull and paralysis, from falling three metres. According to a SafeWorkSA media release

“The incident occurred in May 2006 as the farmhand, aged in his early 20’s, was working on a large stock crate prior to mustering sheep for shearing. The crate had been borrowed from a neighbour. The farmhand had to stand on a small platform three metres off the ground and operate a manual winch to lower a ramp within the crate.

During this task, the winch handle forcefully struck the man in the face, after which he fell from the platform to the ground. This resulted in skull fractures and the loss of sight in his right eye, and spinal damage, which left him paralysed.”

The farmers had preventative management measures in place prior to the incident and have made considerable changes to the workplace to enable the worker to return to work.

The comments of Industrial Magistrate Stephen Lieschke in his judgement are worth noting

“While (they) believed they were being comprehensive in their safety improvements, they appear not to have given the same attention to the stock crate as to their own plant and equipment, probably because it was occasionally borrowed to them.”

The defendants were fined $A28,000, a hefty fine compared to some given out in the same jurisdiction. This figure was after a higher than usual 30% penalty reduction. Industrial Magistrate Lieschke applied the discount because of an “exceptionally high level of demonstrated contrition”. The magistrate puts it this way

“General deterrence does require a substantial penalty due to the prevalence of serious injury from the obvious danger of unprotected work at height, and due to the need for employers to take a structured risk assessment and control approach to all work processes and plant.

As first offenders the defendants are each exposed to a maximum fine of $100,000. In my opinion a notional total penalty based on a starting point of a fine of $40,000 is appropriate after taking account of all the above circumstances. After reduction by 30% this results in an aggregate penalty of $28,000. This in turn results in a fine of $7,000 for each defendant.

I also record a conviction against each defendant.”

SafeWorkSA advised SafetyAtWorkBlog that they did prosecute the owner of the stock crate but that, in February 2009 also heard by Industrial Magistrate Lieschke, the charges were dismissed.

Also, the injured worker, Kerrin Rowan, received a worker achievement award from WorkCover in 2008 and clearly the support from the local community is important.

Kevin Jones

Category: height

Gas, lungs, ladders, fruit picking and concrete pumping – latest workplace incidents

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Television exposé of children at risk on roof insulation worksite

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Recent workplace incidents

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Biomarkers for musculoskeletal disorders

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Migrant workers’ deaths on Christmas Eve

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Serious injuries can occur regardless of good OHS intentions

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