HEIGHT SAFETY NEWS

Civil construction company fined after workplace incident

Source: SafeWork NSW

Menai Civil Contractors Pty Ltd has been fined $69,750 in the Industrial Court of NSW after pleading guilty to a category 3 offence under the Work Health and Safety Act NSW 2011.

SafeWork NSW prosecuted the civil construction company following a workplace incident on 11 November 2022 where a worker fell nearly 4 metres from a bridge abutment.

Menai Civil was engaged as the principal contractor at a construction site at Huntley, New South Wales where the worker was employed to undertake formwork stripping.

At the time of the incident, the worker was positioned at the top of the southern abutment, using an extension ladder to attach wire chains between a 26-tonne excavator and form soldiers.

The worker was not wearing a harness when carrying out this work, as the steel to anchor it was on the opposite side of the abutment.

The court found that the risk of a worker falling from height while stripping formwork was known to Menai Civil and it had a duty to ensure its subcontractors were following safe systems of work. Its failure to do so was inconsistent with a proactive or systematic approach to safety.

Menai Civil was convicted of failing to meet its duty to ensure the health and safety of its workers.

Falls from heights remain a leading cause of traumatic injuries and fatalities at NSW workplaces, with most occurring in the construction industry.

SafeWork NSW continues to prioritise the safety of workers at heights, with falls from heights listed as the first item in its 2025-26 regulatory priorities to prevent or reduce the risk of death, injury and illnesses in NSW workplaces.

Find information about how to stay safe while working at heights.

Quotes attributable to SafeWork NSW Commissioner Janet Schorer:

"Falls from heights are a primary cause of serious injuries and fatalities across workplaces in the state.

“Having the court recognise the risks that contributed to this incident reinforces that safety obligations are not optional and proactive risk management is crucial in keeping workers safe.

“SafeWork NSW remains committed to supporting industry and workplaces to keep their workers who are at height safe and encourages any business with workers exposed to heights to complete the ‘working at heights in construction safety checklist’ to keep employees safe at work.”

Sole trader sentenced to corrections order after fatal fall

Source: WorkSafe Victoria

A carpenter has been sentenced to a one year Community Corrections Order after a young worker suffered fatal head injuries when he fell three metres through an unprotected stair void on a Glen Waverley construction site.

The sole trader, 29, trading as Big Basa Constructions, was sentenced without conviction in the Melbourne County Court today after pleading guilty to a single charge of failing to ensure a workplace under his management and control was safe and without risks to health.

He was ordered to complete 100 hours of community work and pay a $10,000 fine.

The court heard that the carpenter engaged a 23-year-old worker to assist him at the site, where he had been contracted to build frames and erect roof trusses for multi-storey townhouses. 

In September 2022, the young worker was carrying lengths of steel along the first floor when he fell through the open stair void to the concrete floor three metres below.

He suffered serious head injuries and later died in hospital.

A WorkSafe investigation found there were no guardrails installed around stair voids in the units under construction and that the ladder used at the time of the incident did not extend past the first floor level.

It was reasonably practicable for the carpenter to eliminate or reduce the risk of death or serious injury due to a fall by installing perimeter guard rails around stair voids, and by using a ladder that extended at least 90 centimetres past the first floor and was securely fastened at the top and bottom.

WorkSafe’s Chief Health and Safety Officer Sam Jenkin said it was unacceptable that workers continued to die or suffer life-changing injuries as a result of falls from heights.

“It’s both shocking and heartbreaking to see a young worker lose his life after a workplace fall that could and should have been prevented,” Mr Jenkin said.

“No one ever thinks an incident like this will happen at their workplace and so, far too often, duty holders ignore well-known and relatively simple measures to control hazards – leading to tragedy.”

Pearl Construction Group Pty Ltd, the principal contractor on the site, has also been charged in relation to the incident and will appear at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on 8 December 2025.

To prevent falls from height employers should implement the highest possible measures from the five levels in the hierarchy of controls:

Level 1 Eliminate the risk by, where practicable, doing all or some of the work on the ground or from a solid construction.
Level 2 Use a passive fall prevention device such as scaffolds, perimeter screens, guardrails, safety mesh or elevating work platforms.
Level 3 Use a positioning system, such as a travel-restraint system, to ensure employees work within a safe area.
Level 4 Use a fall arrest system, such as a harness, catch platform or safety nets, to limit the risk of injuries in the event of a fall.
Level 5 Use a fixed or portable ladder, or implement administrative controls.

$900k in fines handed out as SafeWork cracks down on falls from heights threats

Source: SafeWork NSW

Almost $1 million in fines have been issued at the halfway point of SafeWork NSW’s 12-month blitz on falls from heights.

The ‘Working at Heights in Construction’ campaign followed a concerning rise in the number of serious injuries and deaths attributed to falls from heights, resulting in 17 people killed between 2018 and 2022.

Since May 2023, SafeWork Inspectors have visited 1,218 worksites resulting in 1,499 Improvement Notices, 727 Prohibition Notices and 352 Penalty Notices amounting to $972,000.

The blitz has seen Inspectors visit several commercial and residential sites across the state, as well as conducting high visibility checks in manufacturing and warehouse industries in addition to inspections in the transport industry leading up to a busy Christmas period.

During their field work, Inspectors gauged that 65 per cent of industry is using the highest form of safety measures as their first choice including the use of fall prevention devices, such as roof guardrails and scaffolding, rather than fall arrest systems such as harnesses.

SafeWork will continue to prioritise the safety of workers at heights in 2024 with continuing inspections, starting off with a blitz on the safe installation of rooftop solar panels this month.

Contractors and builders are obligated to protect workers by identifying height risks and taking steps to control these hazards as far as reasonably practical by implementing higher order controls.

Head of SafeWork NSW Trent Curtin said:

“As we pass the halfway point of SafeWork’s ‘Working at Heights in Construction’ compliance blitz it is important to note that falls from heights is still the number one cause of traumatic fatalities on NSW construction sites.

“While it is encouraging that 65 per cent of industry is using the highest form of safety measures, this means that 35 per cent are not and this needs to change. Otherwise, businesses run the risk of workplace accidents as well as fines and prosecution.

“During one worksite blitz a SafeWork Inspector noted a worker who was not connected to a harness system while working on a roof. When questioned as to why they were not connected, the worker reasoned that they had been roofing for 30 years without an incident.

“Attitudes like this will eventually result in a workplace accident or death. This is simply unacceptable. SafeWork Inspectors will not hesitate to stop work on site, issue fines and consider prosecution against businesses and individuals disregarding the rules.”