Inspector Stephen Gill v J D Thompson Personnel Pty Limited; Inspector Stephen Gill v Visy Paper Pty Limited [2005] NSWIRComm 73

Industrial Relations Commission of New South Wales in Court Session

CITATION: Inspector Stephen Gill v J D Thompson Personnel Pty Limited; Inspector Stephen Gill v Visy Paper Pty Limited [2005] NSWIRComm 73

Prosecutor Inspector Stephen Gill PARTIES: Defendants J D Thompson Personnel Pty Limited (ACN 092 366 017) trading as Jobwire Visy Paper Pty Limited (ACN 005 803 234)

FILE NUMBER(S): 2990 and 2991 of 2004

CORAM: Backman J

CATCHWORDS: Occupational Health and Safety - sentencing - injuries sustained after falling 3.4 metres down a conveyor chute - application of section 12 Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 where prior convictions are committed in a separate division of a corporate defendant - application of general and specific deterrence - gravity of the breach and potential serious consequences - reasonably foreseeable risk to safety - safety systems in place at time of offences as mitigating the seriousness of the offences - culpabilities of each defendant compared - early pleas of guilty - other personal factors - penalty - orders.

Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 LEGISLATION CITED: Occupational Health & Safety Act 2000

Capral Aluminium Limited v WorkCover Authority of New South Wales (Inspector Mayo-Ramsey) (2000) 99 IR 29 Drake Personnel Limited trading as Drake Industrial v WorkCover Authority of New South Wales (Inspector Ch'ng) (1999) 90 IR 432 Inspector Stephen Campbell v James Gordon Hitchcock (2005) NSWIRComm 34 Inspector Stephen Charles v Port Kembla Copper (2005) NSWIRComm 54 Maddaford v CSR Limited and Mulgoa Quarries Pty Limited (2004) NSWIRComm 337 R v Shenton (2003) NSWCCA 346 R v Thompson, R v Houlton 49 NSWLR 383, 115 A Crim R 104 CASES CITED: Veen v R (No. 2) (1988) 164 CLR 465 WorkCover Authority of New South Wales v Kirk Group Holdings Pty Limited (2004) 135 IR 166 WorkCover Authority of New South Wales (Inspector Ankucic) v Drake Personnel Limited trading as Drake Industrial (No.1) (1997) 89 IR 374 WorkCover Authority of New South Wales (Inspector Barbosa) v McDonald's Australia Limited (2003) 125 IR 270 WorkCover Authority of New South Wales (Inspector Legge) v Coffey Engineering Pty Ltd No2) (2001) 110 IR 447 WorkCover Authority of New South Wales (Inspector Tuckley) v The Crown in Right of the State of New South Wales (Department of Community Services) 96 IR 1