A transport and logistics company has been fined $625,000 (and ordered to pay more than $8000 in costs) over the serious injury of a worker in 2021.
Toll Transport Pty Ltd pleaded guilty to failing to provide and maintain a safe workplace and, by that failure, causing serious harm to the worker, and was fined in the Perth Magistrates Court on October 3.
In January 2021, the injured worker was employed as a forklift driver at Toll Transport’s premises at Perth Airport. Having returned from work after a shoulder injury, he was on light duties.
The area in which he was working included loading docks and freight bays where freight was delivered and sorted before being loaded onto road trains and transported to mine sites.
Some freight bays were marked with a sticker on the concrete floor that corresponded with an identical sticker placed on the freight.
On the morning of the incident, the injured worker was tasked with changing the stickers on the floor of the freight bays.
He was bending over changing a sticker when he was struck from behind by a reversing forklift, one of the three forklifts operating in the area that morning.
He suffered serious injuries to both legs, including fractures and crush injuries and the degloving of part of one leg, and has required five surgeries since the incident.
WorkSafe Commissioner Sally North said the case brought up two very important areas of concern in workplaces – forklift safety and the separation of mobile plant and pedestrians.
“In this case, the company was aware of the risks associated with the operation of forklifts in areas where interaction with other workers might occur,” Ms North said.
“Safe work procedures were in place that included being aware of pedestrians, maintaining a three-metre exclusion zone and checking mirrors and over both shoulders before reversing a forklift.
“However, the court found that Toll’s procedures fell short in that they should have delineated the area between forklifts and pedestrians.
“It was practicable for Toll to have used barricades to keep operating forklifts out of the areas where pedestrians could be placing stickers on the ground.
“Toll did implement the use of barricades after this incident, but unfortunately too late for the worker who suffered serious and lasting injuries.
“A guidance note on safe movement of vehicles at workplaces is available on WorkSafe’s website, and I urge managers at workplaces in which pedestrians and mobile plant can be in the same space to review this guidance and to consult workers to ensure that reliable and effective controls are in place.”