Fall from roof leads to three separate prosecutions

A dogman’s fall of eight metres through a fragile asbestos roof in December 2007, which resulted in serious injuries, has lead to three separate prosecutions. 

In a complex employment set up, Sturt Street P/L contracted Dusk Homebuilders P/L for refurbishment of a commercial building. Dusk Homebuilders P/L engaged Matthew Chapman and Christian McCalman as project managers to manage the refurbishment works. Dusk Homebuilders engaged Melbourne Budget Roofing P/L (MBR) replace the roof.  MBR then engaged Eazy Lift P/L, to supply a crane, driver and dogman to lift new iron roof sheets onto the roof and remove other material from the roof.

WorkSafe successfully prosecuted MBR and the two project managers. All pleaded guilty. The court found that MBR as a roofing specialist should have identified the nature of the roof and the safety risks to persons working on the roof, it should have enforced its own JSA with respect to the use of fall arrest harnesses and lanyards and it should have insisted on the unprotected edge risks been remedied before proceeding with any work.  MBR was convicted and fined $15,000.  It also found that Chapman and McCalman were not sufficiently experienced to manage the project and undertake the tasks allocated to them. They especially failed to ensure a safe workplace in not insisting on fall protection for those working on the roof. They were each fined $7,500.