Health and Safety Negligence at Essex Based Package Company
A packaging company based in Essex has been fined £12,000 and told to pay costs amounting to £4,971 after a line supervisor injured her hand whilst using machinery at work.
Lynda Jackson, 57, was attempting to dry parts of the gluing system at CBT Packaging Ltd when her right hand became trapped in the machine. The incident left Miss Jackson without two of her fingers.
“Lynda Jackson was failed by the company’s lack of proper training, inadequate assessment of risks, an absence of safe working practices and preventing access to dangerous equipment,” Health and Safety Investigation Inspector Julie Rayner revealed.
“It is simply unacceptable that this lady should be injured at work as a consequence of her employer’s negligence. I hope other employers take note of this case and review their own processes.”
The HSE investigation found that health and safety procedures were often neglected even though they were stated in the company’s policy. For example, a worker cleaning the rollers while they were moving was viewed as standard practice despite the dangerous implications.
Ms Jackson had two months off work following the accident though the damage to nerves in her fingers may prove to be permanent. CBT Packaging Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching the 1974 Health and Safety at Work etc Act and was subsequently fined the five-figure sum and ordered to pay almost £5,000 in fines.
