$225,000 fine over two deaths at Mt Lyell mine upsets victim’s family

THE owners of a closed copper mine where two workers fell to their deaths more than three years ago have been handed a $225,000 fine

The entrance to the Mt Lyell copper mine on the state’s West Coast.

THE owners of a closed copper mine where two workers fell to their deaths more than three years ago have been handed a $225,000 fine in a landmark case unions hope will back their push for new laws.

Copper Mines of Tasmania, which owns the historic Mr Lyell copper mine at Queenstown, pleaded guilty in August to a count of failing to provide a safe workplace in relation to the deaths of Alistair Lucas and Craig Gleeson in a mine shaft on December 9, 2013.

The family of Mr Lucas criticised the penalty, saying the company should have been fined the maxium $1.5 million.

Mr Lucas’ father Phillip said his family was not surprised by the outcome.

“We will hear more about exactly what happened at the coronial inquest,” he said outside the court.

“We knew before we arrived at court that this would be the verdict. We are not surprised.”

In the Magistrate’s Court in Burnie, Magistrate Tamara Jago ruled CMT’s breach of the workplace law to be at the lower end of the scale of seriousness.

Ms Jago said while the company had not been adequately vigilant, it had not been neglectful.

“There was not a lax attitude toward safety at the mine and, in general, proper safety systems were in place,” she said in her sentencing remarks.

“The fine imposed has no bearing on the value of the lives of Mr Gleeson or Mr Lucas.”

Phillip and Lorraine Lucas, the father and stepmother of killed worker Alistair Lucas, arrive at the Burnie Court. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

Mr Lucas was only 25 and had been working at the mine for 2½ years when he and his 45-year-old colleague plunged 22m to their deaths after part of the linkage assembly they were replacing fell onto the temporary wooden platform on which they were standing, causing the platform to break.

The platform had not been tested nor had a job safety analysis been carried out before the men went down the shaft. After the fatal accident, a new platform – costing less than $2000 – was bought to ensure the job could be carried out safely in the future.

Both Mr Lucas and Mr Gleeson were members of the Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union.

The AMWU has been pushing for the State Government to introduce industrial manslaughter laws so companies in breach of workplace safety laws could be charged with criminal offences.

AMWU state secretary John Short said unions had been campaigning for many years for change.

“We want to make sure there are strong deterrents to make sure that employers don’t put workers in risky sit­uations or environments,” Mr Short said.

“There is currently no chance of anyone going to jail when it comes to disregarding safety.”

CMT’s general manager care and maintenance Peter Walker said the company understood no court-imposed penalty or apology could adequately assuage families for the loss of their loved ones.

“Nevertheless, on behalf of CMT I again want to offer our sincere apologies to the families of Craig and Alistair,’’ Mr Walker said.

“CMT will continue to offer the families every support that we can.”

He said since the men’s deaths and another in January 2014 – which is still the subject of court proceedings – CMT had reviewed its operating systems in consultation with expert engineers and safety specialists from around the globe.

Ms Jago said between 2004 and 2014 the injury rate at the mine had fallen from 312 incidents per one million working hours to 81.

“This is significant in such a high-risk industry,” she said.

She said maximum penalties needed to be reserved for the most extreme cases — and this was not such a case.

“The gravity of injury does not always dictate the penalty,” she said.

CMT will face court again next year in relation to the death of miner Michael Welsh in a mudrush in January, 2014.

The company has pleaded not guilty to that charge.