Firm fined over worker fall injury
23/08/2010
An incident at an onion packing firm where a worker fell and broke his shoulder has resulted in the company being fined.
Richard Webster fell around three metres while he was covering onion boxes with plastic sheeting at the Moulton Bulb Company Ltd site in Spalding.
Mr Webster, of Whaplode, near Spalding, was using polythene to wrap a five and a half metre stack of boxes when he fell from a ladder, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said. Mr Webster was forced to stay off work for a month after breaking his shoulder at the Glebe Farm site at Roman Bank, on September 10, 2009.
Moulton Bulb Company Ltd of Long Lane, Moulton, near Spalding, pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and was fined £6,000 and ordered to pay costs of £2,188.
Prosecuting, HSE Inspector Jo Anderson said: "Falls from height are the biggest cause of workplace deaths and it's crucial employers make sure work is properly planned, appropriately supervised and sufficient measures are put in place to protect staff from these risks.
"As a result of this the company has changed its procedures to eliminate the need to work at height by applying polythene sheeting at floor level and then lifting the boxes up. I'm satisfied the company has learned from this incident and would encourage employers in a similar line of business to consider doing the same, if they don't already."
Copyright © Press Association 2010