Bakery company guilty after worker seriously injured

Bakery company Yarrows has pleaded guilty to a health and safety breach after a hoist operator was seriously injured.

The case was called in the Hawera District Court today related to the incident which occurred at the Manaia site in October last year. A guilty plea was entered to one of two charges.

The charge was: "Yarrows (The Bakers) 2011 Limited being an employer failed to take all practicable steps to ensure the safety of an employee... while at work, in that it failed to ensure he was not exposed to hazards arising out of the use of a hoist machine."

The charge - laid under the Health and Safety in Employment Act of 1992 - carried a maximum penalty of a $250,000 fine.

The 1992 legislation was last month replaced by the much tougher Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, which carry maximum fines of up to $3 million for breaches by a company.

A spokesperson for WorkSafe confirmed the agency intended to seek the leave of the court to have the second charge withdrawn.

Sentencing has been set for September.