Prosecution Details
Offender | G.P. Mackie & Co Pty Ltd (ACN 097 274 738) |
Charges
Charge | Charge Number | Offence Date | Date Convicted | Regulation | Section | Penalty Provision | Penalty Imposed | Date Sentenced |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | MO313/15 | 14 May 2012 | 8th July 2015 | 19(1) 19A(2) | 3A(3)(b)(i) | $25,000.00 | 8th July 2015 |
Description of Breach(es) | The Accused, being an employer, failed so far as was practicable to provide and maintain a working environment in which its employees were not exposed to hazards and by that contravention caused serious harm to an employee contrary to sections 19(1) and 19A(2) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984.
|
Background Details |
GP Mackie and Co Pty Ltd is a company which runs 3 farms in New Norcia region of Western Australia being Mirridong, Mundina and Undernooka Farms. The Directors of GP Mackie and Co Pty Ltd are Michael Robert MACKIE, Peter Gilbert MACKIE and Ross Douglas Roy FORRESTER. As at 14 May 2012 GP Mackie and Co Pty Ltd employed three workers. WORKPLACE The workplace is a cattle and hay farm where crops and grains are also grown. Another company (a sister company) also operates at the same workplace, primarily producing hay for export markets. This company has the same directors as GP Mackie and Co Pty Ltd. The workplace contains and uses various plant and machinery including tractors, tele-handlers, trucks, motorbikes, quad bikes, ploughs and Morris Air seeders which have augers attached. PROCESS A truck is bought alongside the auger and delivers fertilizer or seeds into the hopper. The fertilizer or seeds then travel up the auger into the air seeder bin. INCIDENT On the day of the accident Farm Manager started work on the Air Seeder and operated it for about 1 ½ hours before returning to the office for a meeting with Peter MACKIE. The farm manager states that Peter MACKIE told him to get the mechanical fitter to take over from him. The accident occurred while the mechanical fitter was auguring fertilizer up into the bin on the air seeder whilst working alone. During the process the mechanical fitter states that he thought he saw a piece of rock in the hopper. He states that he "rather stupidly but instinctively reached for it (the rock) believing he was well out of reach of the flight from the auger". There was no guard fitted to the auger hopper. The mechanical fitter suffered partial amputations of the middle 3 fingers on his left hand and required surgery and rehabilitation. HAZARD At times the guard was intentionally removed from the auger due to difficulties with fertilizer clumping and not getting through the guard. This was done with the knowledge of Peter Mackie. In addition, the accused's sister company had been previously been given 10 improvement notices by Worksafe inspectors between 2005 and 2009 for guarding issues. The sister company has the same Directors as the accused and operates from the same workplace. Employees that were exposed to that hazard were at risk of suffering serious injuries such as loss of finger/s or permanent loss of use. It was practicable for the Accused to have used a guard on the auger. The Accused has since installed a guard on the auger which was made from scrap materials around the farm. There was little cost to the accused.
|
Outcome Summary | The Accused plead guilty and was convicted. The Magistrate fined the Accused $25,000 and ordered costs of $1584.00 |
Court | Magistrates Court of Western Australia- Moora |
Costs | $1584.00 |
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.
Offences committed prior to 1 January 2005, while of limited comparative relevance, can be accessed via the following link.