Director jailed and company fined following worker fatality
A Liverpool-based waste and recycling company has been fined and its director jailed after the death of a 39-year-old worker.
Gaskell’s (North West) Limited and Jonathan Gaskell were sentenced for their part in the death of an employee in 2010 and for continuing to operate the same baling machine in a dangerous manner for up to five years after the fatality.
Liverpool Crown Court heard how the employee died while working at Gaskells Waste Services in Bootle on 23 December 2010. The company was operating a machine used to compress recyclable and waste materials into small bales. This machine had a defeated interlock system, enabling a worker to enter the machine while it remained in operation.
The worker entered the baling chamber of the machine to clear a blockage of waste materials that had caused it to stop. The machine automatically activated and the worker suffered haemorrhaging, shock and severe traumatic injury to both legs. He died on his way to hospital.
A joint investigation by the HSE and Merseyside Police found that the baler’s safety interlock system had been defeated two months earlier. Poor maintenance of the machine meant it required frequent operator intervention.
HSE inspectors later attended the site on 16 July 2015 after the regulator was informed that the company was continuing to use the same machine while further critical safety systems on the baler were defeated, five years after the fatality. The HSE found that the machine could be operated whilst the guarding was open, meaning it could still run and production could continue with the operator being put at serious risk of injury. This was noted as a serious aggravating factor by the Judge upon sentencing.
Breach
Gaskell’s (North West) Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
- Section 2 (1) requires that every employer ensures, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all employees.
Jonathan Gaskell pleaded guilty to breaching Section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
- Section 37 makes directors, managers, secretaries and similar officers liable for offences where it is proved the offence occurred with the consent or connivance or was attributable to any neglect on behalf of these persons.
Penalties
Gaskell’s (North West) Limited was fined £700,000 and ordered to pay costs of £99,886.57.
Jonathan Gaskell was sentenced to eight months in prison.
Council fined for exposing employees to an obvious risk
Hull City Council has been fined after it failed to address an "obvious risk" of employees working on ice before a worker fell and suffered broken ribs when re-laying ice at The Hull Ice Arena.
On 30 August 2014 a worker was marking the lines for the ice hockey pitch at the arena. He was walking towards the centre of the ice rink when he slipped and fell heavily onto the ice, suffering head injuries and breaking three ribs.
An HSE investigation identified that there had been a number of previous incidents where employees had slipped and fell on ice.
Breach
Hull City Council pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Penalty
Hull City Council was fined £185,000 with £44,442.71 costs.
Timber products manufacturer fined for repeated failures to guard and maintain equipment
Ashwell Recycled Timber Products has been fined after repeatedly failing to appropriately guard and maintain woodwork equipment used by their employees.
The Court heard that employees had been exposed to the risk of serious injury because a radial arm drill was not fitted with an effective guard or trip device and the housing on a re-saw blade and self-return function on their cross-cut saw had not been maintained.
These failures were identified despite the company receiving previous enforcement action from HSE on similar issues.
Breaches
Ashwell Recycled Timber Products pleaded guilty to two breaches of Regulation 5(1) and one of Regulation 11(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998:
- Regulation 5(1) requires that every employer ensures that work equipment is maintained in an efficient state, in efficient working order and in good repair.
- Regulation 11(1) requires every employer to ensure that effective measures are taken to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery or any rotating stock-bar or to stop the movement of dangerous parts of machinery or any rotating stock-bar before any part of a person enters a danger zone.
Penalty
Ashwell Recycled Timber Products was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,831.75.
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