Sage Sagittarius, the coal carrier that’s been under investigation by the authorities of the Australian government for the suspicious deaths of its two Filipino employees, has yet again attracted more scrutiny about its seaworthiness in the Australian waters.

WorkSafe Victoria recently reported that a Somerton boat company has been found guilty and fined $275,000 over the death of a worker in December 2011.

Managers and supervisors must understand their legal responsibilities.

In a recent case in SA, a site supervisor has been convicted and fined $1,750 plus costs for a breach of S21 (1) (a) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The maximum he could have received is $10,000, and if this case was brought in a Harmonised jurisdiction, he could have been fined up to $300,000.

Even if the employer is not fined, a supervisor can be, for a failure to take reasonable care to avoid adversely affecting the health and safety of workers.

In a recent case in the industrial court of NSW, Australian Standards have been used to determine the objective seriousness of an offence. This is an important article from King & Wood Mallesons (repeated here in full) clearly explaining how Australian Standards can and do affect how the courts treat some offences. Of particular note in this case, is that the courts referred to the Australian Standards to demonstrate that certain risks were reasonably foreseeable.

A serious injury of a factory worker caused a company to compensate charges of $40,000, exclusive of $1,800 in costs for damages.