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The Industrial Court of NSW has imposed a fine of $750,000 to Newcrest Mining after a Jumbo offsider ('Nipper') amputated their left arm below the elbow within the Cadia East Underground Mine. Newcrest plead guilty to the section 32 offence. The Incident A nightshift workgroup (Operator and Nipper) were installing ground support meshing to a Heading. The workgroup was required to insert a new drill steel and coupling into the right-hand boom of the Jumbo to continue bolting t

An electrician who filed for unfair dismissal for breaching his site’s working at height requirements has been found to not have been harshly, unjustly or unreasonably terminated by the Fair Work Commission. The Incident A workgroup of two electricians was directed to perform maintenance work on a booster pump of a Mobile Mining Unit (‘MMU’) that was on parked on an incline. To freely access the pump, it required the removal of an aerial antenna from the MMU. To access and t

An employee who claimed that he did not have to sign a document outlining his personal compliance with his employer’s safety obligations, workplace expectations and procedures has been found to have not been unfairly or constructively dismissed by the Fair Work Commission. The Contentions His employer provided that the document did not alter the terms of his employment and that the acknowledgment of the document was a lawful and reasonable management instruction. Further, th

The Industrial Court of NSW has ordered a fine of $360,000 and further costs of $37,500 after convicting a PCBU of a section 32 offence of the WHS Act. The Hoist In April 2023, a fitter was converting a RX274 Raxtar Vertical Hoist from a trailing cable system to being busbar-powered on a construction site in Macquarie Park. The hoist was connected to a three-phase 415V power supply. Over two shifts prior to the incident, an electrician was converting the hoist. The busbar was