A New Plymouth New Zealand contractor has been fined NZ$30,000 after an employee rolled a digger down a hill and ended up on ACC for a year. Sources: Stuff NZ, Taranaki Daily News
Mangorei Sawmills Ltd (MSL) was sentenced in New Plymouth District Court after pleading guilty to a charge of breaching the health and safety of an employee, laid by WorkSafe New Zealand.
In January last year MSL managing director Clive Allen, driver Mark Chapman and the farm owner met to discuss some logging work on the farm near Stratford.
On April 13 Chapman began work building a track to access the work site.
He filled out a “tool box meeting” form, aimed to identify hazards and set out a plan to deal with them.
He identified the hazards as the digger, steep hill and track and controls being “to use your brains” and “no cowboy shit”.
As he excavated up the hill he noticed he was getting close to a wet papa rock face, so climbed out of the digger to check it, deciding it was safe to proceed with care.
He got back into the digger and continued, but the digger lost traction and slid and rolled down the bank.
Chapman was knocked out as a result, but later regained consciousness and was able to phone for help and was helicoptered to hospital.
He suffered muscle damage to his thigh, bruising and mild concussion.
Lawyer Andrew Laurenson said MSL was in a difficult financial situation, which would affect its ability to pay the reparation.
He said the wet papa rock was not a hazard that could have been foreseen before the day of the accident.
Prosecutor for WorkSafe NZ Sanya Woodhead said the risk of harm was significant, increased by the fact Chapman was working alone with limited means of communication.
Woodhead said MSL had not made sufficient checks that Chapman was qualified, although it was aware he had 14 years experience operating a digger.
Judge Stephanie Edwards imposed a fine of NZ$20,000, taking into account MSL’s ability to pay it, and ordered the company to pay NZ$10,000 in reparation to Chapman.
Edwards accepted there had been a departure from industry standards, and specific hazard management plans needed to be implemented.
MSL has no previous history of health and safety breaches. The company no longer carries out forestry work and as a result Chapman was made redundant.
