Novus Precast fined $30,000 for Work Health and Safety breaches

A Darling Downs employer has been hit with a fine relating to two safety failures, one of which it didn’t report to the regulator.

A Toowoomba business was fined for two Work Health and Safety breaches.

Toowoomba concrete manufacturer Novus Precast has been fined $30,000 for two workplace safety violations.

The matter related to an incident on April 27, 2022 when a worker was hit in the head with a chain.

Last month Toowoomba Magistrates Court was told workers were loading concrete panels onto an A-frame trailer owned and operated by a contracted transport provider.

A worker for the defendant operated the gantry crane to load the panel.

Another of the defendant’s workers walked through the loading area and alerted the crane operator to the panel being loaded unevenly.

He was given a rubber chock to place under the panel. The worker remained next to the trailer until the panel was loaded.

Once loaded, the truck driver pushed the securing chain over the panel which struck the worker in the head.

The truck driver admitted he did not call out “chain coming over” when he pushed the securing chain, and knew this was contrary to the Safe Work Method Statement.

The court was told the SWMS included the control measures to; stand clear when elements are being loaded onto the trailer; enforce an exclusion zone for travel paths; and when pushing secure chains to call out “coming over”.

During the Work Health and Safety investigation, workers of the defendant said they were not aware of any SWMS for the activity of loading concrete panels, and that it was not uncommon for workers to walk through the active loading area while concrete panels were being loaded.

The defendant was sentenced for breaching its duty by failing to mark an exclusion zone, failing to train its workers on the SWMS, ensuring that the SWMS was complied with, and that workers were directed to cease work if the SWMS was not being adhered to.

During the investigation, investigators were made aware of a separate incident that occurred on 16 February 2023, where a worker’s finger was crushed at work and required surgery.

In sentencing, magistrate Kyna Morice took into account that Novus was a good corporate citizen, made an early plea, lacked any criminal history, and demonstrated remorse.

Ms Morice also acknowledged the defendant’s support for the injured worker, and the significant post-incident measures.

Novus pleaded guilty to breaching sections 33 and 38 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 and was fined $30,000, with no conviction recorded.