On 20 August 2026 an air conditioning installation company was sentenced in the Brisbane Magistrates Court for breaching section 32 of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld) (‘the Act’). The defendant pleaded guilty having failed to comply with its primary health and safety duty thereby exposing workers to the risk of death or serious injury.

The defendant was involved in the supply and installation of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning to a small two storey commercial building and subcontracted a secondary company to complete the installation. When completing the work, a worker fell 3.7 metres through an unguarded skylight to the level below sustaining serious injuries.

The prosecution submitted that there were reasonably practicable control measures that could have eliminated or minimised the risk of falling including the installation of edge protection, roof penetration covers and signage indicating the falling hazard.

The defence submitted that the defendant was a small business with capacity to pay issues and a high penalty would be debilitating to the company.

In mitigation, her Honour considered that the defendant lacked prior convictions, entered an early plea of guilty and had capacity to pay issues.

Her honour noted that the Code of Practice, Managing the risks of falls at workplaces Code of Practice 2021, did not have a specific procedure for skylights but stated that the defendants extensive experience would make the risks well known to the defendant.

In sentencing her Honour sought to balance these mitigating factors with the seriousness of the offending, the impact on the injured worker, the need for deterrence and the objects of the WHS Act.

Her Honour had regard to the principles set out in Nicholson v GCMR Project Services Pty Ltd [2025] QCA 242 (‘GCMR’) noting that comparable decisions prior to GCMR should be viewed in light of the principle found that the penalty should bear a reasonable relationship to the maximum penalty.

The Magistrate sentenced the defendant to a fine of $70,000 with professional costs. Her Honour did not record a conviction and referred the fine and costs to SPER.

OWHSP contact: enquiries@owhsp.qld.gov.au