Machinery head-crush fine almost doubled on appeal
A fine which was issued in Victoria last year — following a worker suffering life-threatening crush injuries when his head was caught in machinery — has been almost doubled on appeal. Class Plastics (Aust) Pty Ltd was fined $40,000 without conviction in the Sunshine Magistrates’ Court in December 2024. This was after pleading guilty to a single charge of failing to maintain plant that was safe and without risks to health. Melbourne County Court set aside the original sentence on 11 April, as the result of an appeal, convicting the company and imposing a $75,000 fine. The company was also ordered to pay $4000 in costs.
This incident occurred in April 2022 when a supervisor’s head was caught between a moving bar and the machine’s frame while attempting to rectify an issue with a plastic blow moulding machine at the company’s Truganina factory. The man suffered a traumatic brain injury, fractured skull and intracranial bleeding that required immediate surgery. The machine’s interlock system — which should have stopped it from operating while the access doors were open — was disconnected and the sensors that should have activated it had been covered with tape, a WorkSafe Victoria investigation found.
It was reasonably practicable for the company to have conducted regular inspections of the interlock system and checked that sensors and other safety devices on the machine weren’t compromised. “Unfortunately, we still see far too many injuries and deaths involving machines that weren’t properly maintained or lacked appropriate safety features,” WorkSafe Victoria Executive Director of Health and Safety Sam Jenkin said, adding that there would be absolutely no tolerance for employers who allowed unsafe machinery to operate in the workplace.
“Given the extensive guidance provided on the safe operation of machinery — and the number of tragedies that should serve as stark warnings — it’s hard to see this incident as anything but completely preventable,” Jenkin said. “We will continue to pursue the toughest penalties for employers who fail to protect workers from such widely understood risks.”
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