The HSE’s investigation into the incident on 28 November 2015 found the company failed to ensure agency workers had been suitably inducted before being allowed to work in an area where forklift trucks were operating. The investigation also found the company had failed to explain the measures designed to keep pedestrians and fork lift trucks separated to its workers. There was no control of the keys for the fork lift trucks on the day shift, where they were permitted inside the sortation hub, even though they were banned from the inside of the building on the night shift.
APC Overnight Ltd of Sortation Hub, Blakeney Way, Kingswood Lakeside, pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and was fined £120,000 with costs of £10,500.
Speaking after the case, HSE inspector Steve Shaw said “Those in control of work have a responsibility to both devise safe methods of working and to provide the necessary information, instruction, and training to their workers in the safe system of working. Employers must ensure agency staff have a suitable and sufficient induction so that they can work safely and be safe.
“If a suitable safe system of work and induction process had been in place prior to this particular incident, the injuries sustained by the employee could have been prevented.”
