Deaths from falls
Fatalities caused by falling from heights remains the second highest cause of workplace deaths in Australia, second only to vehicle collisions. (Vehicle accidents make up 42% of workplace deaths across Transportation, Postal, and Warehousing industries.)
Falls from Heights
Falls from heights makes up 15% of workplace deaths in Australia.
Unfortunately, incidents of falls from heights have been increasing in recent times and are currently 32% higher than the 5-year average. Almost 50% of fatalities from falls were workers in the construction industry.
Studies of over 100 court cases relating to falls from heights showed that the common denominator was lack of risk management measures (RMM) with over 80% due to inadequate work procedures. [Ref 1]
This is a WHS issue.
WHS management system
Every business that employs people must have a WHS management system which includes providing information, instruction, training, and supervision to and for workers to perform their jobs safely. [Ref 2]
Training must include knowledge of and application of risk management principles.
When someone is hurrying or overwhelmed by the pressure of a deadline and chooses to "take a shortcut" or becomes oblivious to their surroundings due to deep focus on their task, numerous disasters can happen. The necessity for a worker to take such risks suggests a larger issue within that work environment. While directors and CEOs are ultimately accountable for the success or failure of the WHS management system, it isn't necessarily straightforward to blame "management."
Management might have good intentions, but their challenge could lie in executing the WHS management system or overseeing it. If risk assessments are flawed, management may inadvertently act on incorrect data to manage the identified hazards. Numerous possibilities exist.
Reckless conduct
Deadlines must be met, and jobs need to be completed. But putting oneself or others at risk in order to meet those deadlines is not “going above and beyond the call of duty.” Deliberately taking risks at work may be interpreted as “reckless conduct.” It is the fact that actions are wilful and deliberate that determines the charge. It does not account for one’s “best intentions.”
“Reckless Conduct” is a category 1 offence (the most serious) under Section 31 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 with current penalties at just under $10 million for a business and just under 1 million dollars, or 10 years imprisonment for an individual (as of July 2024.) [Ref 3] There does not have to be a fatality for these charges to be made.
Workers will always be faced with pressure to meet deadlines, and people will naturally want to do the right thing and go the extra mile if they can. But there is a point where enthusiasm becomes recklessness.
Industrial Manslaughter
In New South Wales, Industrial Manslaughter is a criminal offence under Section 30A the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 with penalties of up to $18 million for a business and 25 years imprisonment for business owners and directors.
Directors and CEOs need to understand that “Industrial manslaughter” is defined as “…grossly negligent conduct that breaches their work health and safety duties that they owe an individual and cause the death of that individual.” [Ref 4]
The offence of industrial manslaughter commenced in New South Wales on 16 September, 2024.
Case studies
These court cases are often referred in case studies concerning falls from heights. Note that penalty amounts have increased considerably since these cases concluded. See here for more information: Three Categories of WHS Offences and a Table of NSW Penalty Units (2024-2025)
On 1 July 2019, a builder was fined $5,000 when one of his workers fell 2.8 metres from an unprotected edge leading when undertaking plastering work on a balcony. The injured worker was not directly engaged by the builder but was a subcontractor to the original contractor. The builder was found guilty of failing to provide a site-specific induction to the workers and failing to prepare a health and safety coordination plan. The contractor was also fined $8,000 for the same offence.
On 11 June 2019, a plumbing company was fined $7,500 plus costs for failing to ensure that its workers wore safety harnesses, and that adequate edge protection was put in place on the roof of a 3-storey building. Even though there was no actual injury sustained by the worker, footage of the work had been taken and was used as evidence to charge the company.
On 7 March 2019, a plumbing company was fined $50,000 in relation to an incident where a 16-year-old worker fell through a skylight at least 5 metres, suffering significant injuries. The company was found guilty of not providing a Safe Work Method Statement for high-risk construction work and no appropriate fall protection measures existed. The worker was not given any information, instruction or training regarding working from heights.
On 6 March 2019, a Scaffolding company was fined $16,000 plus costs as a result of incorrectly constructed scaffolding that led to a worker being seriously injured after falling from a height and being impaled on an uncapped upright.
On 28 February 2019, a building company was fined $25,000 following an incident when a carpenter fell from the second floor of a house through an unguarded staircase void onto a concrete slab. He suffered a spinal cord injury and became paralysed from the chest down. The builder failed to cover the void or install a temporary barrier.
Education
To reduce the possibilities of circumstances that cause serious harm to workers is to educate managers and workers on WHS principles. Knowledge and application of these principles in no way stands in the way of doing one’s job and meeting deadlines, but it does help to ensure that workers perform their jobs more thoughtfully and ask for help when they need it or make more accurate assessments of their own workload and demands, and any associated risks.
When implemented well, WHS measures and protocols actually increase efficiency and productivity! A business must solicit contributions from the workforce in order to develop WHS measures, plans, and procedures that keep the workers safe. WHS consultation is a collaborative activity.
Courtenell offers WHS training courses that are suitable for managers, supervisors, and workers that cover essential WHS principles that all persons must know. Every person in a workplace has WHS duties. These are legal obligations and are not negotiable. Courtenell courses are simple courses mapped to the WHS Act and WHS Regulation that may help participants determine ways to improve the Safety Culture of their business and workplace and therefore improve working conditions without harming productivity.
The cost to train your people in health and safety is far less than the cost of a fine for a workplace tragedy or workplace fatality.
For more information on WHS training or WHS compliance services, or if you would like help to make your WHS management system even more robust, please feel free to contact us at train@courtenell.com.au or phone us on 02 9552 2066
References
Ref 2. WHS Act 2011 Section 19 Primary Duty of Care
Ref 3. WHS Act 2011 Section 31 Negligence or reckless conduct- Category 1
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