Fines for unsafe work practices
A recent case on the Gold Coast involving a jumping castle company, was fined $50,000 for failing to comply with work health and safety requirements, exposing workers to a risk of serious injury or death.
The company rented jumping castles on the Gold Coast, and casually employed workers to drop off, set up, and pick up the equipment.
Before each shift, the workers collected a truck and run sheet with details of the day. Each truck was pre-packed by a supervisor, and not checked by workers.
On-the-job training was a regular occurrence, involving a buddy system. A less experienced worker would be paired with an experienced worker for a day and shown what to do. The company had no formal safety training in place, or specific training relating to using and transporting generators used to power jumping castles, when a main source of power was not available.
On 10 February 2018, three casual workers were dropping off a final jumping castle to a client. All three workers had been employed by the company for six months or less (it was one worker’s first day at the company).
When the workers arrived on site, they opened the truck and noticed that the generator was on its side with a puddle of petrol on the floor.
Two of the workers fixed up the position of the generator and wiped up the petrol. While they were doing that, they noticed the petrol cap was loose and a battery hanging off the side of the generator by a wire. As one worker was securing the battery, the wire sparked and an explosion occurred. There was no safety equipment in the truck, and the two workers experienced significant burn injuries.
The Queensland Police Service examined the situation, and linked the generator to be the most evident cause leading to the explosion. It was advised that the generator should have been secured while in a moving vehicle.
Magistrate Mark Howden found that “the incident arose from a combination of events, including the generator not being secured, a lack of training and the fact there was no safety equipment on the truck.”
It is probable that securing the generator would have prevented the explosion.
The company was convicted of one charge under sections 32 and 19 (1) of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011, fined $50,000 and required to pay professional and court fees of approximately $4,100.
Although operating a practice does not necessarily involve the setting up of jumping castles, this case illustrates that by incorporating sufficient workplace health and safety measures and training, it can prevent the occurrence of significant incidents or errors within the workplace.
Please contact our Workplace Relations Team on (07) 3872 2222 or at workplacerelations@amaq.com.au, if you have any further questions or require advice regarding workplace performance and training.