Pam Gurner-Hall criticises SA Government’s rejection of coroner’s safety measure on scissor lifts
Jorge Castillo-Riffo died on a scissor lift. Three out of four workers who use them have a spotter. But the State Government will not implement mandatory spotters.
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The rejection of a coroner’s recommendation for a stronger safety protocol for scissor lifts, despite a survey showing operators believe it necessary, is “insane”, says the widow of a man killed while using one.
The State Government is maintaining its refusal to implement the recommendation for a spotter to be used, following deaths at the Royal Adelaide Hospital construction site.
Three out of four scissor lift operators and stakeholders use a spotter, or believe one is required, whenever an elevating work platform is in operation, a SafeWork SA survey shows.
The rejection of the recommendation that spotters be present whenever a scissor lift is in use until elevating work platform control configurations are standardised across the country has been labelled “insane” by Pam Gurner-Hall, the widow of Jorge Castillo-Riffo.
Mr Castillo-Riffo, 54, died when he was crushed while working on a scissor lift at the new Royal Adelaide Hospital during its construction in 2014.
The survey, which was detailed in a new SafeWork SA report, found 73 per cent of respondents used and/or believed that every scissor lift in operation required a spotter; 25 per cent believed that the use of spotters should be determined via a risk assessment while 11 per cent did not believe spotters were needed.
Respondents could select more than one response and the question was not applicable to six per cent of respondents.
Ms Gurner-Hall said there had been six scissor lift deaths in Australia since her partner Mr Castillo-Riffo was killed in December 2017, and the Government needed to take meaningful action.
“I want to see real action, not weasel words,” she said.
“The reality is people are still dying.”
Ms Gurner-Hall said the Government’s insistence on allowing a risk-based approach, whereby companies and operators determine whether a spotter was needed, was “manifestly inadequate” and put lives at risk.
“In the Coroner’s own words … he notes that the reliance on … documentation and guidelines (and) manuals etc has proved inadequate,” she said.
“Essentially this Government has declined to accept the recommendation that was made in relation to spotters on sites even though the SafeWork SA audit actively shows that a majority of sites are using or agree with the use of spotters on machines.
“Why would the Government ignore the most recent finding of its own audit into scissor lifts?”
Treasurer Rob Lucas told The Advertiser the Government agreed with the coroner’s recommendation to standardise scissor lift controls across Australia. He said it was important there was consistency across states and territories and that he would raise it at the next COAG meeting.
Mr Lucas also defended the Government’s decision not to enforce mandatory spotters until such standardisation was implemented, saying existing safety laws required the use of spotters depending on the risk.
