Kiwi Guilty

Tuesday 18 July 2000

Kiwi Dairies was successfully prosecuted in the Hawera District Court today after an accident at its Hawera factory last November.

Kiwi was fined for failing to take all practical steps to ensure the safety of its employees. The accident left Scott Wirihana with serious injuries to his right hand. The resulting damage has left him with severely reduced use of his hand and the prospect of months of physiotherapy and rehabilitation still to come.

OSH’s New Plymouth branch manager, Murray Thomson, expressed bitter disappointment that such an accident occurred in a company the size of Kiwi.

"Not only was it totally preventable, Kiwi had basic procedures in place but these did not control the hazard."

Thomson believes that perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the accident is that it occurred despite the company’s progress to implementing a hazard management system.

"This is one of the biggest companies in the country and it is disappointing that an accident has occurred at a time when they were making progress in improving their health and safety.

"It is not just an issue of complying with the law or protecting employees, it is good business. Accidents mean costs. Poor workplace health and safety costs businesses over $3 billion a year.

"The fine is nothing compared to what this accident would have cost the company and there is certainly no way you can compare it with what it has cost the victim."

Although Kiwi has not had a good safety record in the past, recently there has been a significant decrease in the number of accidents they have had.

"The fact that OSH has investigated 40 serious accidents at Kiwi since 1996 is a major concern. What would be even worse is if we had not seen a change, but thankfully things are getting better.

"We have been working very closely with them, the result is that the number of injuries has dropped a lot."

Taranaki By Products Limited were also charged in Hawera today on the same charge for a nearly identical accident. The accident also resulted in very similar injuries.

"It is a bitter coincidence that today we have seen almost identical cases where poor health and safety standards have turned people’s lives upside down.

"Although the focus often falls on workplace fatalities, there are many many more cases like this that result in needless suffering."