5 March Machinery Safety – Fine issued after worker drawn into unguarded machine Machinery Safety – Fine issued after worker drawn into unguarded machine Key Facts: Worker left with multiple serious injuries, including a broken neck after being drawn into an unguarded machine Machinery safety overlooked The HSE said that the incident ‘could and should have been prevented’ The company was fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £1,252 … Read More
5 March Spotlight On Peter Baker – HSE’s new chief inspector of construction Peter Baker – HSE’s new chief inspector of construction Peter Baker has been appointed as the HSE’s new chief inspector of construction and will replace Philip White on 1 April 2015. Peter is currently the head of the HSE’s Chemicals, Explosives and Microbiological Hazards Division which regulates the onshore major hazard industries. The post of … Read More
3 March NHS Trust in court over asbestos find NHS Trust in court over asbestos find Key Facts: Asbestos is the biggest single cause of work-related deaths in the UK Asbestos fibres were found in several areas of an NHS Trust basement Recommendations following an earlier asbestos survey were not acted upon The Trust were fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £696 in costs Read More
2 March Builder fined after worker’s fall from height Builder fined after worker’s fall from height Key Facts: Roofing work was poorly supervised and undertaken without safety equipment Worker in fall from height of nearly six metres and was ‘lucky not to have lost his life’ in the incident Partner fined £10,000 and ordered to pay £5,717 in costs as a result of the … Read More
27 February Farm worker exposed to toxic gases Prosecution following farm worker’s exposure to toxic gases Key Facts: A farm owner and his two businesses have been fined following as a result of serious safety failings A worker, 29, died as a result of exposure to toxic hydrogen sulphide gas The HSE found a number of unsafe practices and failings The owner and … Read More
10 February Corporate Manslaughter prosecution, fine, suspended sentence and publicity order Corporate Manslaughter prosecution following a fall through a fragile roof. Following the fatal fall through a fragile roof in 2011, a building firm was sentenced by Preston Crown Court in February after it pleaded guilty to corporate manslaughter. Following their investigation, the HSE said that the company did nothing to make sure that the worker (Jason Pennington) was … Read More
2 February Corporate Manslaughter case – Northern Ireland Corporate Manslaughter case – Northern Ireland sawmill has been fined £75,000 after pleading guilty to corporate manslaughter. PL, an experienced fitter and maintenance engineer, was crushed to death by a large automated saw at A Diamond and Son (Timber)’s Coleraine site in September 2012. The company has about 50 employees and has been operating for 75 years. … Read More
2 February Gross Negligence Manslaughter sentence Gross Negligence Manslaughter sentence for builder – two years imprisonment after pleading guilty to the manslaughter of an inexperienced labourer who was crushed while dismantling a chimney at a house in Yorkshire. Mr Nigel Parker had employed 23 year old Danny Hough because he was short of workers on the project to extend the home … Read More
2 February Suspended Sentence for Manslaughter Gross Negligence Manslaughter is a personal offence and can be punished by imprisonment and/or by fine. This is different from Corporate Killing (Corporate Manslaughter), which is a Corporate Offence and is punishable by a fine. In this recent case, the director of a London metalworks firm has been convicted of gross negligence manslaughter after a … Read More
27 January CDM 2015 Rules and Regulations The CDM 2015 Regulations come into force on 6 April 2015 and will apply to all building and construction projects, regardless of the size, duration and nature of the work. With these new regulations good quality, professional health and safety advice will be needed more than ever. A summary of some of the key changes are … Read More