25 Mar Fines totalling €450k following workplace fatality
Fines totalling €450k imposed following workplace fatality at ferry port
At a hearing in the Central Criminal Court, fines totalling €450,000 were imposed on two companies following a workplace fatality at an Irish ferry port. A Swedish-based cargo handling company was fined €150,000 and a Northern Ireland-based stevedoring company was fined €300,000.
The case arose following a Health and Safety Authority investigation into an incident in 2019 where a haulier at the very port was struck and killed by a vehicle manufactured by the cargo company and operated by the stevedore company.
The cargo-handling company had previously pleaded guilty to failing to ensure that the vehicle, an empty container handler, was designed and constructed so as to be safe and without risk to health when properly used by a person at a place of work in that it failed to provide appropriate devices to remedy hazards due to restricted visibility from the driving position of the container handler, being a breach of section 16(1)(a) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.
The stevedoring company had also pleaded guilty to failing to identify the hazard of restricted visibility from the driving position whilst operating the empty container handler, assess the risks presented by the hazard, and be in possession of a written assessment at the place of work while work was in the course of being carried on, being a breach of Section 19(5) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.
Mark Cullen, Assistant Chief Executive of the Health and Safety Authority, said,
Working in and around plant and machinery is a well known hazard and has been a contributing factor in a significant number of fatal work-related incidents. It is vital that employers carry out a risk assessment for this type of work and identify the appropriate control measures to ensure the safety of employees and others working in and around areas where plant and equipment is being operated. As can be seen from this case, failure to do so can lead to a tragic consequences.
Source: hsa.ie