‘Inexcusable’ worker’s death sparks record sentencing

Safety deficiencies identified within a Melbourne garlic bread manufacturer have led to a manslaughter conviction and the largest-ever fine under Victorian safety laws.

Risham Nominees, the parent company of Centenary Bakehouse, was sentenced with a $3.4 million fine after earlier pleading guilty to a single charge of engaging in negligent conduct that led to the death of a worker who fell while conducting ceiling upgrades.

A WorkSafe investigation found an insufficient standard of care related to the work, including a failure to refer to any industry standard, no control measures in place to mitigate the risk of a fall, and no requirement to wear the available harnesses.

It was reasonably practicable for Risham Nominees to have provided an independent scaffold system to reduce the risk to employees, the investigation concluded.

According to WorkSafe chief health and safety officer Sam Jenkin, these failures directly led to the employee’s death.

“Working at height is one of the most obvious and well-understood workplace risks, with the tragic consequences of non-compliance proven time and time again,” he said.

In this way, organisations are reminded to eliminate the risk by doing all or most of the work on the ground or from a solid construction, and by using a passive fall-prevention device, a positioning system, and a fall arrest system.

Jenkin said: “WorkSafe will continue to target negligent employers who choose to ignore their legal duties and gamble with workers’ lives.”

The prosecution is WorkSafe’s second under Victorian workplace manslaughter provisions since their introduction in 2020.

Want to see more stories from trusted news sources?
Make HR Leader a preferred news source on Google.