Issue Date:  -  Tuesday, 20 September 2005

Plumbing and drainage company fined for unsafe excavation

A Bunbury plumbing company has been fined $15,000 for failing to provide a safe workplace after a trench collapse seriously injured a worker.

Vandaro Nominees Pty Ltd – trading as Correct Line Drainage and Plumbing – pleaded guilty and was convicted in the Magistrate’s Court of WA Bunbury last week of failing to provide and maintain a safe workplace for employees.

In September 2003, company employees were working in a trench as part of in-fill sewerage work close to the Collie River in Eaton, a suburb of Bunbury.

The trench was around 6.5 metres deep, and shoring boxes had been used to support the walls of the trench.  The shoring boxes extended from two metres below the surface to around two metres above the floor of the trench.

At least one employee expressed concern that the shoring boxes were too high above the floor of the trench and that the trench walls were too vertical so that there was a danger of the unsupported lower walls of the trench collapsing.

Part of the trench wall subsequently collapsed while two employees were working in the trench.  One of the employees was hit by falling soil and suffered a fractured collarbone, shoulder and ribs, for which he is still undergoing rehabilitation.

WorkSafe WA Commissioner Nina Lyhne said today that the case was a reminder of the importance of implementing and enforcing safe systems of work, especially in the hazardous area of excavation work.

“The employer in this case had not ensured sufficient safe systems of work were in place, and an employee has suffered serious injuries as a consequence,” Ms Lyhne said.

“WA has had a code of practice for excavation work for several years, and this code has been updated and is in the process of being printed at the moment.

“Advances in technology over recent years have led to changes in the laws relating to excavation work, and the updated code of practice reflects these changes.”

The Commission for Occupational Safety and Health’s Code of Practice on Excavation applies to all workplaces in WA where excavation occurs and to all workers who may be exposed to hazards resulting from excavation in those workplaces.

It provides practical guidance to prevent injury and disease in all workplaces where excavation and associated earthworks are performed.

Excavation work may range from shallow trenching and simple foundation excavation to large and complex excavations for buildings and structures and deep sewers where the risk of serious injury is very significant.

Production of the code is in its final stages, and it should be available next month.

Ms Lyhne said this week’s court case served to illustrate that every employer has a responsibility to provide and maintain a safe workplace for everyone in that workplace.

“This company did not have adequate safe work procedures in place, and has suffered the consequences of having to pay a substantial penalty for breaching WA’s occupational safety and health laws,” she said.

“I strongly urge all employers engaged in excavation work to get a copy of the new code of practice when it becomes available.

“I also urge all employers – big or small - to take a look around their workplaces, identify any hazard that could cause an injury, illness or even death, then take action to reduce or eliminate those risks.”

Further information on safe work practices and excavation work can be obtained by telephoning WorkSafe on 9327 8777 or on the website at www.safetyline.wa.gov.au.