On Thursday, 20 March, Paper Australia Pty Ltd was found guilty in the Latrobe Valley Magistrates’ Court for neglecting to ensure their workplace continued being safe and secure. The firm was also required to pay a cost of $10,000. The subject of discussion in the court was a certain machinery used to reduce the size of large paper rolls into smaller ones at Paper Australia’s location in Morwell. The operation of this machine called for two people – an operator and an assistant.
The responsibility of the assistant was situated at the finishing point of the equipment, where there existed a perilous area, composed of slitter blocks and partially sheltered slitter knives. During January 2023, a worker who was trying to remove a jam of paper being channelled into the machinery had her arm brush against a slitter block, causing it to be shifted into this danger zone.
Upon extracting her hand from the device, the staff member noticed that she had sustained a grave gash on her forearm – measuring roughly 10 cm lengthwise, 6 cm breadthwise, and 2 cm in depth. Subsequent to the accident, she was transported to a hospital and underwent surgical treatment.
An investigation by WorkSafe discovered that although the device was equipped with interlocked shielding to prevent workers’ access during operation, these were neutralised due to the manual character of the threading process. The verdict of the court was that it was reasonably feasible for Paper Australia to sustain a work system which necessitated the disruption of slitter block operations via the control panel of the machine, and bringing the slitter blocks to a halt prior to employees gaining entry to the gated division around the device.
Sam Jenkin, WorkSafe’s Executive Director of Health and Safety, made his viewpoint clear that it was evident there existed an obvious risk of serious injuries to the workers handling the machine and it needed control. “Only a matter of days after the incident took place, the company incorporated a much safer work system for this machine ─ however, it shouldn’t have taken such serious harm to arrive at that point,” stated Mr Jenkin.
He further emphasised, “All employers are obliged by their duty to proactively determine hazards in their worksite and regulate the risk in advance of any incident or injury taking place.” It is imperative for employers to manage risks when working with machinery. Training employees about work safety products like Bluesafe SWMS (Safe Work Method Statements) and adopting policies like Bluesafe WHS Management System can significantly help identify and control risks at work.
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Original article link: https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/news/2025-04/30000-fine-after-worker-injured-paper-machine