Simpsons Malt Limited of Tweed Valley Maltings, Tweedside Trading Estate, Berwick has been asked to pay over £15,000 as fine and costs, for a breach of health and safety violations. After an incident on 6 October 2007 when a worker fell off the forks of a forklift truck while repairing a jammed shutter, the company pleaded guilty to the charge of breach of safety laws.
The worker - John Weatherburn of Berwick, was attempting to repair a jammed roller shutter while standing on the forks of the forklift truck, a clear violation of safety rules, which advocate the use of proper equipment such as ladders, mobile scaffolds and cherry pickers for work involving heights.
Following the ruling, HSE reminded employers and staff of the dangers of working at heights and the need for adequate and proper safety equipment at all times. HSE Principal Inspector Richard Bulmer commented that falls from heights are among the most common causes of accidents and serious injury at the workplace. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations require all employers to carry out an assessment of risk by a competent person, click on risk assessment training to ensure your organisation meets its basic commitments to providing a safe work environment for your staff.
He said that the use of the proper equipment is well-documented in safety regulations and the company, in the absence of a cherry picker, should have used at least a proper cage mounted on the forklift pallet. The open platform was clearly unsafe for the task. He also pointed out that fall from heights is the most common cause for workplace casualties and employers had to take proper precautions to ensure the workers