Solar installers fined over electrical apprentice's death

In 2018 NECA Reported on the tragic death of a young 19-year-old electrical apprentice when he fell 7 meters. In August 2018, Jaryd Hayter was installing a solar panel mounting rail on the roof of a warehouse in Tomago NSW when he fell through a skylight and landed on the warehouse floor.

He was wearing a safety harness attached by a rope to the roof, but the rope was too long.

Hayter, a first-year electrical apprentice who commenced his trial with PV Solar only a week earlier, suffered a severe traumatic head injury in the fall, and died after life support was withdrawn a few weeks later.

The incident was investigated by SafeWork NSW and the case was recently heard in the NSW District Court and we now have details about incident:

• On 23 August 2018, Mr Pollock, Mr Mills and Mr Hayter from PV Solar Pro Pty Ltd (PV Solar) arrived on site at 7:30am at Wet & Dry Coatings Pty Ltd (Wet & Dry) to install solar panels on two adjacent warehouses at their site found at 24 Punt Road, Tomago.
• Prior to starting work, Mr Pollock conducted a Job Safety Analysis (JSA) during which he identified the hazards at the site. Mr Pollock advised both Mr Mills and Mr Hayter of the skylights on the roof and directed them to always remain harnessed. Cones were placed on the skylights to show them as a hazard, to be avoided.
• The main anchor points and ropes were set up on the roof prior to the commencement of work at the site. Mr Mills set up Mr Hayter’s restraint system.
• Mr Pollock conducted a visual check on all equipment before it was used and before work began. The purpose of the visual checks was to look for any damage to the ropes or harnesses, any cracks or rust in the anchor points and to check that the lanyard shock absorber system was engaged. PV Solar also encouraged its workers to do a visual check of their own ropes.
• By 11:00am, most of the mounting rail to lay the solar panels on had been fixed to the roof. Mr Mills descended from the roof via a ladder to take a lunch break.
• Between 11:15am and 11:30am, Mr Hayter continued to measure and cut rail and fix them to the roof. Mr Pollock was installing electrical cables and working side on to Mr Hayter. Mr Pollock could not see Mr Hayter at the time and did not see or hear him fall.
• Adrian Kirsch and Joseph Tabone, employees of Wet & Dry, were working inside the warehouse when they heard a thud on the ground. Mr Hayter was lying on the workshop floor with his safety harness attached to a rope hanging from the roof through the skylight.
• Mr Hayter had fallen approximately 6.5 metres. When Mr Pollock attended to Mr Hayter he noticed that the rope grab appeared to be set too far down the length of the rope.
• NSW Ambulance attended the site and Mr Hayter was taken to John Hunter Hospital. ACT scan was undertaken that showed multiple skull fractures indicative of a severe traumatic head injury.
• Mr Hayter underwent neurosurgery and remained in a critical condition displaying no signs of recovery. His injuries proved fatal and life support was withdrawn on 5 September 2018.

PV Solar pleaded guilty to an offence pursuant to s 32 Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (the Act) in that it failed to comply with the health and safety duty it owed pursuant to s 19(1) of the Act and thereby exposed Jaryd Hayter, Nicholas Mills and Nicholas Pollock to a risk of death or serious injury.

The maximum penalty for this offence is a fine of $1.5 million.

Judge Scotting noted PV Solar did have safety systems requiring workers to obtain working-at-heights qualifications before being employed, but "unknown to [it], the working-at-heights course attended by Mr Hayter had some material deficiencies".

He found an appropriate fine for the employer was $400,000, before reducing it by 25 per cent for its guilty plea. He ordered it to pay $70,000 in costs and recorded a conviction.

SafeWork NSW v PV Solar Pro Pty Ltd [2021] NSWDC 258 (18 June 2021)

There was 90,000 solar installations completed in NSW in 2020 no doubt there will be even more this year. Minister for Better Regulation, Kevin Anderson, said earlier this year that “One thing that we’ve got to stress is that no solar installer should be working on a roof without fall protection in place. If you see this happening, please contact SafeWork NSW immediately via the hotline, or the Speak Up app.”

Solar installers face on-the-spot fines of up to $720 for individuals and $3,600 for businesses for not protecting workers from falls from heights and electrical risks.

SafeWork NSW has also released a guide to safe solar panel installation with an emphasis on using higher-order controls than rope and harness for the protection of falls. Click here for a copy of the guide.

For WHS assistance please do not hesitate to contact NECA's Member Services Team on 1300 361 099 or email memberservices@neca.asn.au