For the first time, a strata management company and an owners’ corporation have been prosecuted together by SafeWork NSW over a fatality involving an industrial gate. The worker’s employer was also prosecuted. The three fines issued by the court total $750,000, plus costs.
On 22 August in the District Court, the strata manager engaged by the relevant owners corporation pled guilty to an offence under the Work Health and Safety Act NSW 2011. The company was fined $150,000 and costs.
Last month the owners corporation was found guilty under the Work Health and Safety Act NSW 2011. They were fined $225,000, plus costs.
In July 2023, the employer of the deceased worker was convicted and fined $375,000 in relation to this incident, plus costs. They pled guilty to one charge of failing to comply with its duty to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, the health and safety of its workers.
A 64-year-old worker, employed by a tenant at the Berkeley industrial complex, died on 12 June 2020. The electric industrial entry gate fell on him as he tried to manually open it to gain access to his workplace.
The 8.5-metre-long entry gate was damaged when a van ran into it on 4 June 2020, pushing it off its tracks. The body corporate gave approval for the gate repairs the day after the 4 June damage and a work order issued, however the court ruling said the repairs were not treated as a matter of urgency.
“This sentence outcome completes the prosecutions for this tragic incident and my sympathies go out to the worker’s family and colleagues who suffer his loss. It is important that we do everything possible to prevent something like this from happening again.
“Strata management companies and owners corporations of commercial premises can consider themselves on notice. As this case shows, workplace safety is everybody’s responsibility.”
“While industrial gates are an effective way to protect property, they have the potential to be extremely dangerous if not properly maintained and I urge anyone responsible for an industrial gate to regularly check that it is safe and in good working order.”
Source: NSW Government
