On 26 June 2026, a business was sentenced in the Brisbane Magistrates Court by Her Honour Magistrate Kelly for a single Category 2 offence.

Between 31 July 2023 and 23 October 2023, the defendant failed to comply with their health and safety duty to workers under section 19(1) of the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld) (WHS Act), exposing workers to the risk of serious injury or death in contravention of section 32 of the WHS Act.

The defendant ran a small sized family air-conditioning installation business employing workers casually, including older workers who may have been lost to the industry. On 23 October 2023, the business had been engaged to install ducting on a roof which contained 6 skylights. The control measures adopted were to stay 2 metres from the edge of the building and stay clear of skylights labelled with fall warning hazards.

When completing the work, a worker fell 3.7 metres to the level below, sustaining a traumatic brain injury and torso trauma. Surgical treatment was required and he remained in a medically induced coma for 11 days. There were reasonably practicable control measures that could have eliminated or minimized the risk of falling from height, including:

1. Prohibiting workers from commencing work on the roof until control measures were implemented to manage the risk arising from the skylights;
2. Before roof work commenced, installing or communicating with Abri as Principal Contractor or HP6 as Sub-Contractor to ensure a safe system of work was installed, inclusive of ensuring:
   
   1. Edge protection systems were present;
   2. Roof penetrations and skylights were protected with fall protection covers which were able to support the weight of a person;
   3. Fall protection covers were labelled with clear signage indicating the falling hazard;
   4. Delineation of a safe walk zone which identified the presence of skylights;
3.      Developing a documented and site-specific procedure for working at heights which included direction for working around skylights;
4.       The provision of training, instruction and supervision in the safe working procedures for working at heights.

In sentencing, Magistrate Kelly took into account the defendant’s significant mitigating features, including the lack of prior convictions, cooperation, early plea of guilty, small size of the business and capacity to pay issues.

Her Honour balanced the mitigating features with the seriousness of the offending, the impact on the injured worker, the defendant’s blameworthiness, the need for deterrence and the object of the WHS Act which was primarily to protect the community.

Ultimately, the Magistrate sentenced to the defendant to a fine of $85,000 with professional costs in the amount of $1500 and $105.30 filing fee. Her Honour did not record a conviction and referred the fine and costs to SPER.

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