A pig farm has received the largest ever health and safety fine in Northern Ireland following the country’s first corporate manslaughter conviction.JMW Farms Ltd was yesterday (8 May) fined £187,500 at Belfast’s Langanside Crown Court for safety failings, which led to the death of its employee Robert Wilson.On 15 November 2010, Mr Wilson, 45, was working at the firm’s meal-mixing farm in Co Armagh, when he was struck by a metal bin, which fell from the raised forks of a forklift. The vehicle was being driven by one of the company's directors, Mark Wright (pictured on the right), and the bin had not been properly attached to, or integrated with the forklift. When the vehicle reversed the bin became unstable and fell on Mr Wilson, who suffered fatal head injuries.A joint investigation was conducted by the HSENI and the PSNI, which found that the forklift was an on-loan replacement vehicle while the usual truck was being serviced. The investigation also revealed that it was not possible to insert the lifting forks into the sleeves of the bin, as the forks were too large and incorrectly spaced.HSENI acting deputy chief executive Louis Burns said: “This case highlights the importance of managing health and safety in the workplace and demonstrates the terrible consequences of not doing so.
“This new corporate manslaughter legislation clarifies the criminal liabilities of companies where serious failures in the management of health and safety result in a fatality.”
JMW Farms pleaded guilty to breaching the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 and, in addition to the fine, it was ordered to pay £13,000 in costs. The company must pay both the fine and costs within six months.
Delivering his sentence, Belfast Recorder Judge Tom Burgess said: “Yet again, the court is faced with an incident where common sense would have shown that a simple, reasonable and effective solution would have been available to prevent this tragedy.
“The very definition of the offence of corporate manslaughter is an acceptance of a gross breach of duty. That is a high and totally unacceptable breach in circumstances where the risks involved were high, with the more than foreseeable likelihood of serious injury, or death following if the proper steps were not taken.”
PSNI Detective Chief Inspector Stephen Wright added: “The investigation should send a clear message that there is no hiding place for anyone that breaks the law. Robert Wilson lost his life as a result of this incident and we hope that this conviction is a stark reminder that legislation is there for a reason.”
Principal Associate and Solicitor-Advocate at international law firm Eversheds, Paul Verrico, commented on the case and he believes the company may find it hard to repay the fine. He said: "The fine may prove difficult for the company, which only turned over £1 million last year, to repay. When the fine is considered against the business’ turnover it serves as a salutary warning that where companies are seen to have grossly failed their duty of care and death ensues due to senior manager neglect, the penalty can be severe.
"All eyes will now be on the second prosecution in England which is due to be heard in June 2012 where Lion Steel Equipment Limited are charged with Corporate Manslaughter and three individual directors face charges of gross negligence manslaughter. The Attorney General recently commented that there are in the region of 50 cases under referral to the Special Crime and Counter Terrorism Division where Corporate Manslaughter is one of the offences under consideration – so the messages to UK Business is ‘be on guard’ to avoid being in a similar predicament to JMW Farms."
Corporate Risk Systems provides a range of Director, Management, Workforce and Safety Professional training.
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