A manufacturer of masonry products for the construction industry, based in Deer Park, has pledged to spend $295,000 to improve health and safety outcomes after a worker’s hand was crushed by a forklift.
On Thursday 25 September, the Sunshine Magistrates’ Court heard National Masonry had entered into an enforceable undertaking while facing four charges of failing to ensure a workplace under its control was safe and without risks to health.
WorkSafe said it may reinstate the charges if the undertaking is contravened or withdrawn.
In August 2023, a worker was using a forklift to load products onto a truck at the company’s factory and storage yard when the truck moved forward without warning and caught the tynes of the forklift, causing it to tip onto its side.
The worker’s left hand was trapped by the forklift’s frame rails and partially amputated by the impact with the ground.
According to WorkSafe, the man has since regained some movement following re-attachment surgery but is not expected to make a full recovery.
An investigation revealed a number of near-misses had occurred at the workplace in the lead-up to the incident, with several instances of unidentified pedestrians almost coming into contact with vehicles moving in the yard.
WorkSafe alleged National Masonry failed to ensure the workplace was safe by failing to reduce the risk of powered mobile plant overturning or colliding with other powered mobile plant and pedestrians.
It is also alleged the company failed to control these risks by implementing exclusion zones around forklifts engaged in the loading of product onto delivery trucks, and training forklift operators and truck drivers in their use, and ensuring pedestrians used the workplace’s dedicated walkways.
The estimated $295,000 undertaking requires the company to engage an engineering designer, provide analysis for prototype testing, fund an educational video series, and donate $15,000 to the Australian Institute of Health & Safety’s ‘Body of Knowledge’ program.
WorkSafe chief health and safety officer Sam Jenkin said employers were responsible for ensuring staff had adequate training to understand the risks of mobile plant, such as forklifts and delivery vehicles.
