Metal products manufacturer Pressfast Industries Pty Ltd has been convicted and fined after a 2008 incident where a worker fell over and hit his head on concrete after being struck by a forklift, and later died.
A Melbourne magistrate has described the failure of the Cheltenham company to seek first aid for the worker who hit his head and later died as ‘outrageous’.
The 60 year-old man was later found unconscious at work and died in hospital two days later.
“There was no qualified first aider on site, and the company failed to call an ambulance or seek first aid for the worker,” WorkSafe Victoria’s strategic programs director Trevor Martin said.
“The only staff member with first aid training was certified in 1984, and wasn’t alerted until it was too late.”
Handing down his sentence, Magistrate Andrew Capell referred to the company’s decision not to seek help from the first aider, despite the expired certificate, as ‘outrageous’.
Following the incident, WorkSafe issued charges against Pressfast under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004.
Pressfast was convicted of two charges and fined a total of $163,500.
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