Prosecution Details
| Offender | Hitachi Plant Technologies, Ltd (ACN 124 967 853) |
Charges
| Charge | Charge Number | Offence Date | Date Convicted | Regulation | Section | Penalty Provision | Penalty Imposed | Date Sentenced |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CO309/11 | 24 March 2009 - 16 April 2009 Inclusive | 29th June 2011 | 48(4) 54 | 3A(1)(b)(ii)(I) | $2,000.00 | 29th June 2011 |
| Description of Breach(es) | Being a person to whom improvement notice 22900108 was issued on 5 March 2009, and not having applied for a review of the improvement notice pursuant to sections 51 and 51A of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984, did not comply with the improvement notice within the time specified therein; contrary to Sections 48(4) and 54 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984. |
| Background Details |
The Accused was engaged by IHI Engineering Australia Pty Ltd to erect scaffolding on site at the Bluewater Power station construction site on Boys Home Road in Collie. On 5 March 2009 two WorkSafe Inspectors attended the site and observed that the scaffolding on site had been erected with solid guard rails at ladder access points, contrary to the relevant Australian Standard Code of Practice AS/NZS 4576-1995, and necessitating workers gaining access to the scaffold to climb over or under the solid guard rail, exposing them to an increased risk of a fall from height whilst accessing the work platforms. The WorkSafe Inspector formed the opinion that this was in contravention of section 19 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 and issued an Improvement Notice to the Accused stating the grounds for his opinion, being: ‘The access from ladders to the working platforms with a height of more than 2 metres on scaffolding throughout the site is hazardous for employees to access and egress from the working platforms because they are obstructed by fixed top guard rails, requiring employees to climb over or through the guard rails putting them at risk of falling while transferring from the ladder to the working platform." The Improvement Notice directed the Accused to provide a safe system of work for employees who access or egress from the work platforms, referring specifically to clause 8.9 of the abovementioned Australian Standard. The date for compliance with the notice was 20 March 2009. On 18 March 2009 the Accused's safety supervisor signed off on the compliance slip informing WorkSafe that the requirements of the notice had been complied with. On 24 March 2009 the same two WorkSafe Inspectors returned to the site and again found solid guard rails at ladder access points with these scaffolds tagged fit for use, non-compliant with the Improvement Notice issued. A further inspection on 16 April 2009 again found ladder access points with a solid guard rail in place and tagged fit for use, still non-compliant with the Improvement Notice issued.
|
| Outcome Summary | The Accused plead guilty |
| Court | Magistrate's Court of Western Australia - Collie |
| Costs | $958.70 |
Search the records of all successful prosecutions taken by WorkSafe under the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 and Occupational Safety and Health Regulations 1996 since 1st January 2005. Searching and indexing of this database is limited to convictions for offences against the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 and Occupational Safety and Health Regulations 1996 committed on or after 1 January 2005, when the statutory offence and penalty regimes were significantly amended.
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