Prosecution Details

Being the employer of an employee who incurred an injury of the kind prescribed in the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations 1996, made under the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984, for the purposes of section 19(3) of the Act, namely an injury which, in the opinion of a medical practitioner, was likely to prevent the employee from being able to work within 10 days of the day on which the injury occurred, failed to forthwith notify the Commissioner in the prescribed form giving such particulars as are prescribed; contrary to Sections 19(3)(b) and 19(8) of the Act.

The defendant operates a labour hire business providing labour to various host workplaces.

The injured employee was employed by the defendant and sent to work for a client of the defendant who operates an export abattoir. On 11 December 2002 the employee was working at the premises of the client at Gingin.

On the morning of 11 December 2002 while cleaning the knife blade of a Weber denuding machine the employee sustained a deep laceration to the palm of his left hand. The employee was immediately taken to obtain medical treatment in Gingin.

The doctor who treated the employee on 11 December 2002, filled in a Workers' Compensation first medical certificate indicating that the employee would be unfit for work from that day until 17 December 2002. The employee received further medical treatment on 13 December 2002 and the doctor filled in a Worker's Compensation Progress Medical Certificate indicating that the employee would be unfit for work for 14 days from 13 December 2002. At this time the doctor was clearly of the opinion that the employee's injury was likely to prevent the employee from being able to return to work within 10 days of the day on which the injury occurred. The employee personally took both medical certificates to the defendant's premises at Northbridge and gave them to a recruitment officer of the defendant.

The defendant did not report the accident to the Commissioner of WorkSafe until 20 January 2002, 3 days after a WorkSafe inspector had informed the recruitment officer of the legislative requirement to notify the WorkSafe Commissioner of an injury as prescribed in the Occupational Safety and Health Act. WorkSafe had become aware of the injury after a complaint had been made to WorkSafe.

The defendant pleaded guilty.