Forestry company ordered to pay more than $500,000 after death at Hawke's Bay site
WorkSafe New Zealand has found inadequate training and supervision contributed to the death of a forestry technician in northern Hawke’s Bay two years ago.
The victim, a 48-year-old father and husband, was fatally crushed at Quail Ridge Forest in Putere, near Wairoa, in November 2020.
The man, who WorkSafe has not named, was crushed while repairing a mechanical attachment, known as a harvester head, when the device was activated by being manually spun.
The victim’s employer, Waratah Forestry Services Limited, pleaded guilty to health and safety failures and was sentenced at the Auckland District Court on Wednesday.
The company had been engaged by Freedom Logging Ltd, which was undertaking the harvest for Forestry Management NZ Ltd.
A WorkSafe investigation identified that Waratah’s field technicians had been inadequately trained about the risks and controls involved in such a repair job, and weren’t properly monitored to correct any unsafe practices.
A fine of $265,000 was imposed, and reparations of $271,000 were ordered.
WorkSafe’s area investigation manager, Danielle Henry, said although Waratah’s field technicians were provided with some safety instruction, the manuals for the harvester head were large and the 'buddy' training system the business had was insufficient.
"There was no other supervision and monitoring of the field technicians’ safety knowledge and practices," Henry, said.
“Any business with field staff should stay on top of how those workers go about their job on an ongoing basis. It can be easy for safety to be compromised without workers necessarily realising it while they’re working remotely, and employers need to be attuned to that risk.
“The victim was a much-loved father, husband, and brother. This is a particularly difficult time of year for his family to go through a court sentencing, and it’s important we recognise their loss as this case comes to a close today."
