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Court Summary - at a glance

Date of offence:
16 February 2022
 
Plea:
Guilty
 
Decision:
Convicted and sentenced
 
Final decision date:
 
Fine imposed:
BF Foodhub starting point – $330,000. Final fine imposed $165,000.

Consultants Limited formerly known as Total Recruitment Limited – starting point of $15,000. Final fine imposed $7,500.

Safety lessons learned:

It was reasonably practicable for BF Foodhub (Highbrook) Limited to have:

  1. Ensured the provision of effective personal protective equipment to workers, including impervious gumboots and an impervious long apron, and monitored workers to ensure it was worn and fit for purpose.
  2. Effectively consulted and co-ordinated with Total Recruitment Limited as to the work the workers, including the victim, were to undertake and how to manage the risks to their health and safety arising from that work, including what personal protective equipment was required, who would provide it, and ensuring it was fit for purpose.

It was reasonably practicable for Consultants Limited formerly known as Total Recruitment Limited to have:

  1. Effectively consulted and co-ordinated with BF Foodhub (Highbrook) Limited as to the work workers, including the victim, were to undertake and how to manage the risks to their health and safety arising from that work, including what personal protective equipment was required, who would provide it, and ensuring it was fit for purpose.

Defendant name:
BF Foodhub (Highbrook) Limited, and Consultants Limited formerly known as Total Recruitment Limited
 
Industry:
Manufacturing
 
Date of offence:
16 February 2022
 
Facts in brief:
The victim was a labour hire worker for Consultants Limited, placed at BF Foodhub (operating as Mr Chips). On 16 February 2022 the victim was undertaking a cleaning task on the floor at a Mr Chips factory, using a chemical cleaning product called Improve 8150. The victim was wearing his usual safety boots while undertaking this task. He began to feel a burning sensation in his feet and was taken for medical treatment. He suffered bilateral chemical burns to his feet, resulting in the small toe on his left foot being amputated and having multiple skin grafts on his feet.

Consultants Limited had a practice of charging workers a bond for PPE and the victim had provided his own PPE safety boots which had become worn and were cracked on the bottom. If he had been wearing gumboots, his injuries could have been avoided.
 
Offence section:
Sections 36(1)(a) and 48(1) and 48(2)(c) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 – BF Foodhub (Highbrook) Limited

Section 34 (1) and (2)(b) – Consultants Limited formerly known as Total Recruitment Limited
 
Date(s) charged:
14 February 2023

Court:
Manukau - District Court
 
Plea:
Guilty
 
Final decision date:
 
Decision:
Convicted and sentenced
 
Fine imposed:
BF Foodhub starting point – $330,000. Final fine imposed $165,000.

Consultants Limited formerly known as Total Recruitment Limited – starting point of $15,000. Final fine imposed $7,500.
 
Maximum fine available:
$1.5 million
 
Reparation:
Emotional harm – $60,000, to be apportioned 50/50 between defendants (BF Foodhub already paid $15,000, to be deducted).
Consequential loss – $195.44 – to be paid by BF Foodhub – balance of ACC top-up not paid (the rest was paid in 2022.)
Costs – $4,666.22 being $2,333.11 per defendant.