General Motors UK Ltd (GM) has been fined £150,000 following the death of a worker, who was crushed in machinery at its car factory in Ellesmere Port in Cheshire.
Liverpool Crown Court was told that 59-year-old Ian Heard had joined the company as an apprentice at the age of 16. He had recently received an award in recognition of his 40-plus years with the firm, which owns Vauxhall.
Mr Heard had been working in the paint unit of the plant on 22 July 2010, when he entered the part of the unit where the trolleys — knows as skids — carry cars through a conveyer system to be spray painted.
The skids had become stuck, and as he freed them, the machine restarted and he was crushed.
The court heard that some time after the machinery was installed in the 1990s a doorway had been created through a wall at the back of the paint unit, which allowed access without cutting the power.
Previously, it had not been possible to reach the conveyor system while it was still operating, as light sensors as the front of the machine would cause it to stop if a worker walked in front of them. There was also an access gate in the fence around the machine, which could only be opened once the power had been switched off.
In 2000, ten years before Mr Heard’s death, a risk assessment identified the potential danger posed by the new door, but no further action was taken by the company. It became standard practice for workers to use the door to free skids when they became stuck.
Sentenced on 14 August, General Motors UK Ltd pleaded guilty to single breaches of section 2(1) of the HSWA 1974 and regulation 11(1) of PUWER 1998, by failing to ensure the safety of employees, and failing to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery, respectively. As well as the £150,000 fine, the company was ordered to pay £19,654 in prosecution costs.
Speaking after the hearing, HSE inspector Martin Paren said: “Ian Heard was a dedicated and loyal worker at Vauxhall for more than 40 years, but, sadly, he lost his life because of the company’s safety failings.”
When commenting on the company’s failure to act on the potential danger posed by the new door, the inspector added: “There was absolutely no point in Vauxhall carrying out a risk assessment into the dangers posed by the machine if it wasn’t going to act on the recommendations.”
General Motors cooperated fully with the investigation and has now installed a new safety system on the door, which prevents it from being opened unless power to the machine has been cut.
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So what did the on-site Unite union safety rep do about the unsafe ‘standadrd practice’?
Some long and searching questions need to be asked of him as well. How many other of his members interests is he not looking after? Since Union safety reps are given paid time for Union duties, maybe Vauxhall should look at getting some money back from Unite.
No Nigel (20/08/2013) what measures were taken to eliminate the risk
if the door was identified as a hazard on the risk assessement what measures were put in place to reduce the risk.
Absolutely disgraceful!
I am car 30 years industry experienced and GM should have been fined millions and a few directors sacked (without payoffs golden handshakes!)
Workers will always take shortcuts and try to save time (to their own benefit) and its about management and unions should wise up to these lethal practices.
This is a disgrace and the fine makes a mockery of health and safety and provides scant value to the life of this man/his dependants ……. but that is the ‘way of the world’. Shouldn’t be – but it is.