A Western Australian earthworks business has been fined in the Albany Magistrates Court for failing to provide a safe work environment, following an incident in 2017 that saw an employee’s legs crushed under a 3000 kg front-end loader.
Screenwest, the company that owns earthworks business Healy N J & Sons was working on a site in the Stirling ranges, conducting excavation tasks when the incident occurred.
The employee was carrying out laser levelling in the excavation pit when a front-end loader reversed into him, knocking him over and crushing his legs. He suffered severe fractures to his leg, including one open tibia fracture.
During the subsequent investigation, it was found that one of the company directors for Screenwest was driving the loader that crushed the worker, and State Prosecutor, Nick John, explained the incident could have been avoided if a spotter had been used.
He labelled the actions of the director as “seriously negligent. It’s a type of accident that happens too often,” he said.
The director was fined $11,000 plus $1,500 in costs, while the company was fined $33,000.
The company could have faced fines of up to $400,000, and the director up to $200,000, but those penalties have been increased since the incident occurred in 2017.