Laundry operator fined $270,000 after driver’s fatal fall
17 Oct 2025•BlueSafe Team•Source: WorkSafe VIC
A laundry operator has been fined $270,000 after a truck driver fell from an elevated tailgate at its Dandenong South workplace and later died from his injuries.
Ensign Services (Aust) Pty Ltd, trading as Laundry Services Australia, was sentenced in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday. It pleaded guilty to one charge of failing to ensure a workplace under its management and control was safe and without risks to health. The company was also ordered to pay $8,500 in costs.
The court heard Ensign had engaged a transport company to provide vehicles and approved truck drivers for its laundry collection and delivery operations. At the laundry, drivers reversed into a dock and lowered their truck’s tailgate to create a bridge for loading and unloading linen trolleys.
In June 2023, two drivers were working at neighbouring docks when one heard a loud noise and discovered the other had fallen 1.2 metres from a raised tailgate onto the concrete floor. The 55-year-old driver was taken to hospital but later died.
WorkSafe’s investigation found the truck involved did not have fall protection handrails installed at the time of the incident.
Ensign admitted it was reasonably practicable to reduce the fall risk by installing swing gates at the dock. These could have been used during loading and unloading when trucks did not have safety handrails.
WorkSafe Chief Health and Safety Officer Sam Jenkin said duty holders needed to do everything in their power to prevent falls involving employees and contractors. He said 39 workers across nearly a dozen industries had died in falls from height since 2021.
“We have the tools and education to prevent every single one, but it’s up to employers to ensure all appropriate safety measures are in place.” Mr Jenkin also said: “Health and safety obligations extend to everyone at a workplace, and WorkSafe won’t hesitate to take strong action against employers who fail in their duties.”
The driver’s employer, Rodrigues Transport Pty Ltd, is also facing charges over the incident. Its next appearance in Melbourne Magistrates’ Court is scheduled for 11 November 2025.
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