A food manufacturing company on the Wirral has been fined £400,000 after one of its employees had to have her leg amputated.
The court heard how Mrs B had been supervising four other members of staff as they completed high-level cleaning tasks during a night shift. She had been acting as ‘a banksman’ for an employee who was controlling a mobile elevating work platform (MEWP). As the MEWP turned through 90 degrees into the warehouse it struck Sharon, crushing her left leg. The incident was captured on CCTV.
She was hospitalised for three months and has had a total of nine operations including several skin grafts.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) revealed a series of failings by Baker & Baker Products UK Limited.
The company failed to have in place a suitable and sufficient safe system of work when escorting MEWP’s from a parked position to point of use. They also failed to provide information, instruction and training for the movement of the MEWP and use of banksman and also failed to adhere to their normal practice and company policy to ensure a trained MEWP operator acted as banksman.
Had these been implemented, the incident could have been prevented.
Baker & Baker Products UK Limited, of Stadium Road, Bromborough, Wirral, pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1) and 33(1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. The company was fined £400,000 and was ordered to pay costs of £7,266 costs.
After the hearing, HSE inspector Ian Betley said: “Ms SB suffered terrible injuries that will affect her for the rest of her life due to the failings of her employer.
“Vehicles continue to be a major cause of serious injuries in the workplace, and the first principle of any employer should be to keep people and vehicles apart.
“The risk assessment decided that someone was needed to escort the MEWP, thus a safe system of work needed to be devised. Employees should have been given appropriate banksman training, including how to effectively communicate with the driver.”
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