Bluesafe SWMS (Safe Work Method Statements) Pty Ltd, also operational under the moniker Bowltiful, was subjected to penalties handed down by the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Friday 13 September, after acknowledging legal responsibility for two violations under the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The company faced a non-conviction fine of $25,000 due to their failure to furnish or manage plant that was safe and posed no threats to health, plus an additional $15,000 in fines for noncompliance with a prohibition directive. They were further ordered to cover $5,671 worth of costs.
In a whirling sequence of events, a 31-year-old employee suffered a severe hand injury while blending ingredients in May 2023. His hand got hitched on a mixing blade, pulling it into the machine and resulting in degloving of his right-hand’s skin. Upon immediate investigation, WorkSafe inspectors discovered the dough mixer was missing an interlock guard – a crucial piece of WHS management system equipment. Consequently, the machine sustained operation even when the hatch was left open, exposing the staff members to spinning paddles.
The inspectors issued a directive prohibiting the usage of the dough mixer until the identified risk could be eliminated. However, their subsequent visit to the premises a month later revealed continued use of the mixer. It was found entirely feasible for the enterprise to introduce an interlocked physical barrier that granted access to the danger zone only when it bore no risk, inhibiting entrance at all other times.
As Sam Jenkin, WorkSafe Executive Director of Health and Safety noted, this incident underscores the critical need for adequate safety measures, like Bluesafe WHS Management Systems, on each piece of machinery and equipment. “This avoidable incident, caused directly by the absence of basic safeguards on cooking apparatus, has resulted in preventable harm that could have potentially been much direr for the worker,” Mr Jenkin stated.
He further emphasised that enterprises failing to ensure the safety of their workers, especially when they are fully cognizant of the risks posed by specific machinery and equipment in their workplace, have no valid justification for their neglect.
Employers must utilise suitable strategies like WHS management systems and policies to control hazards associated with machinery operations.
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Original article link: https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/news/2024-09/noodle-restaurant-fined-40000-after-dough-mixer-injury