Cleaning firm fined after two employees seriously injured

A cleaning company has today been fined $80,000 for two separate incidents in August last year when employees were badly injured.

The Hawera District Court heard that both incidents happened at a meat processing plant in the town where the company, Ecowize, had the contract to clean the premises.

In the first incident an employee suffered serious burns to her chest, neck and ears when a hose she was using to clean the offal processing room burst and sprayed her with hot water.

In the second incident another employee suffered chemical burns to his eyes when the chemical solution he was using to clean the slaughter room floor splashed out of a bucket onto his face.

“The company didn’t have adequate emergency procedures or hazard identification in place which is unacceptable,” says Department of Labour Service Manager in New Plymouth, Jo Pugh.

“In the first incident on 4 August it was clear the company was not maintaining its equipment properly – causing a hot water hose to burst, leaving an employee seriously injured,” she says.

“Our investigation of the second incident on 25 August found that inadequate equipment was used to hold the chemicals while cleaning and a hosing tube wasn’t long enough to reach the chemicals to input them into the system. We found that the company’s staff monitoring practices were lacking,” Ms Pugh says.

Ecowize is now taking further steps to help staff identify hazards in the workplace and prevent accidents.

Note to Editor

• Ecowize Limited was convicted and sentenced on two charges (one for each accident) under Section 6 of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992. This states: Every employer shall take all practicable steps to ensure the safety of employees while at work; and in particular shall take all practicable steps to-
• (a) provide and maintain for employees a safe working environment; and
• (b) provide and maintain for employees while they are at work facilities for their safety and health; and
• (c) ensure that plant used by any employee at work is so arranged, designed, made, and maintained that it is safe for the employee to use; and
• (d) ensure that while at work employees are not exposed to hazards arising out of the arrangement, disposal, manipulation, organisation, processing, storage, transport, working, or use of things—
• (i) in their place of work; or
• (ii) near their place of work and under the employer's control; and
• (e) develop procedures for dealing with emergencies that may arise while employees are at work.
• The Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 is available online: http://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1992/0096/latest/DLM278829.html