WorkSafe prosecution: Grouting Services to pay $290,000 after worker killed by falling beam

Grouting Services was sentenced in the Auckland District Court today.

The death of a 21-year-old worker in the construction sector shows how easily stopgap measures can endanger workers, according to WorkSafe New Zealand.

Aidan Paszczuk was removing steel beams when one fell and killed him at a construction site, a statement released today said.

A WorkSafe investigation found workers devised an ad-hoc way to get the job done when their original method could no longer be used.

Unfortunately, they did not have access to safety-critical information about the security of the 500kg beam.

When Paszczuk stood on a stack of five wooden forklift pallets to use an angle grinder, the beam fell on him.

The company he worked for, Grouting Services, was today sentenced in the Auckland District Court. It was fined $180,000 and reparations of $110,000 were ordered.

WorkSafe said Grouting Services should have carried out an effective risk assessment on how to protect workers.

Danielle Henry, WorkSafe area investigation manager, said: “When there is no obvious safe way to work its best to stop, reassess, and involve experts to develop a new approach – rather than attempting to adapt things on the fly.

“Not stopping for a short amount of time to come up with an alternative safer method cost a family their loved one and affected productivity on a major construction worksite for days and weeks afterwards. Getting workers home healthy and safe must always be the top priority, especially on fast-moving and dynamic construction sites,” Henry said.

A separate WorkSafe prosecution against CLL Service and Solutions involved a crane toppling at the same busy site a year before Paszczuk was killed.

“Sadly, the crane incident was not heeded as the site safety warning that it could have been. The risk of serious harm and death in the construction sector is well known and WorkSafe is committed to ensuring businesses uphold their responsibilities for worker health and safety,” Henry said.

Grouting Services was charged under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.

It had a duty to ensure the health and safety of workers as far as was reasonably practicable.