South Australia engineering firm fined $75,000 after trench collapse causes leg injury

A construction and civil engineering firm in South Australia has received a $75,000 fine following an incident in which a worker sustained a crushed leg due to a trench collapse at a building site in the Adelaide Hills.

An investigation by SafeWork SA revealed the company did not implement a safe system of work and contravened section 32 of the Work Health Safety Act 2012 and the Excavation Work Code of Practice.

The company was recently given a sentence by the South Australian Employment Tribunal after the incident in Totness in July 2022.

SafeWork SA's Executive Director, Glenn Farrel, said the injury sustained by the worker could have been avoided if the company had followed the Work Health and Safety regulations or adhered to the Excavation Work Code of Practice.

More details can be found here.