If someone dies in my clinic, I could go to jail. True or False?
Answer: True
Most states and territories now have laws about industrial manslaughter or workplace manslaughter. These have been implemented to be a major deterrent for serious safety breaches resulting in death.
The penalties include both large fines and jail sentences for manager and directors. Penalties differ between states, but are up to $16,522,000 in fines and 25 years’ jail.
In June 2020, Qld prosecuted its first case under the industrial manslaughter laws. In this case, a forklift reversed into a truck driver, causing him to die several days later in hospital. Both Directors were found to have been negligent by not ensuring appropriate safety controls had been implemented, were fined $3 million each and both sentenced to 10 month’s jail.
“But I just run a massage clinic, no one can die there…..”
On 17 June 2009 an 18-month old died from head injuries when she was crushed under a massage table at a clinic in South Australia. The massage table height was hydraulically operated, and the therapist lowered the table without realising the child was under the table. The Court found the clinic and therapist negligent and said the death was completely preventable.
On 14 February 2016, a 26-year old woman died during a massage treatment in Singapore. Investigations later determined she died from a lung infection not related to the massage. But how would you feel at the time?
In 2018, a man died in a massage clinic in Thailand, 10 minutes after the massage started. It was determined the man died from a blood clot dislodged by the massage.
Also in 2018, a 27-year old man died following a massage in China. After his treatment he started to feel dizzy and unable to walk. He was rushed to hospital but died. Investigation identified that the massage caused a brain infarction – a blockage or narrowing of arteries supplying blood and oxygen to the brain. The court ruled the business and therapist held 90% of the responsibility for the death.
Now that we have industrial manslaughter laws throughout Australia, expect penalties for these types of incidents to increase significantly
What can I do to protect myself?
Here’s some recommended steps:
- Review and update (as appropriate) your health and safety policies and procedures to ensure compliance with the relevant safety legislation
- Undertake a safety audit of your workplace practices, controls and systems to identify any potential hazards or risks to safety and ensure they are fully effective at minimising health and safety risks
- Conduct training sessions and provide information to all staff (employees, sub-contractors, students etc), on a regular basis to ensure everyone is aware of their safety obligations and any relevant new laws
- Ensure that all new workers undergo a proper induction concerning relevant safety matters
- Prepare, collate and keep up to date records on work health and safety matters and incidents and review those records to identify any trends and areas of risk
- Review workplace health and safety leadership and culture to ensure any alleged negligent conduct is not permitted or condoned by the company or its culture
- Take proactive steps to identify, assess and eliminate (or at the least minimise) risks and hazards to the health and safety of workers and other persons in the workplace.
Any questions? Email safetytransformations@gmail.com for a confidential, obligation-free discussion.