lost his job and been convicted of breaching workplace safety.
Matthew Garry Ward, 20, used his mobile phone to film himself dangerously
driving a forklift while working for a Kilmore concrete pipe company in June
last year, according to a summary tendered to Seymour Magistrates Court
today.
Ward then uploaded footage of himself driving the forklift backwards with the
rear wheels off the ground, performing burnouts, and crashing into a concrete
pipe, to the video-sharing website YouTube where it was viewed 238 times.
Nearly two months after the clip was posted, general manager of Australasian
Pipeline and Pre-Cast Kevin Eeles, saw it and and recognised Ward who
confessed and was promptly fired.
A WorkSafe investigation led to him being charged with failing to take reasonable
care of his own safety at work.
He was today convicted, ordered to do 50 hours of community work, and to
pay $1200 in costs. WorkSafe has cancelled his forklift licence.
WorkSafe spokesman Michael Birt said it was Victoria's first occupational
health and safety prosecution stemming from a YouTube posting.
"This is a reminder to young people: you are not indestructible. When things
start going wrong it can often happen remarkably quickly and while no one
was hurt in this case there was a very real risk of that happening," Mr Birt said.
Mr Birt said a recent WorkSafe campaign warned young workers to speak up
about dangers in the workplace and not to do "stupid things".
WorkSafe's executive director of health and safety John Merritt said forklifts
had been responsible for 56 Victorian workplace deaths since 1985.
WCV's: Isn't it pathetic that worksafe have to find work on Youtube!!!!!
It's a shame that they aren't spending their time making our workplaces
safer and supporting injured workers. And after all of this they expect us
to take them seriously, what a joke, blundering idiots!
Reference: The Age newspaper:
Written by: Mex Cooper
November 13, 2008
November 13, 2008
No comments:
Post a Comment