Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 22nd May 2025 Issue no. 1163

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Fine for waste firm after man run over on his first day of work

A waste and recycling company in Oldham has been fined £250,000 after a man was run over on his first day on the job.

The then 40-year-old was hand picking waste when he was hit from behind and then driven over by a moving shovel loader, which had to reverse when nearby colleagues raised the alarm.

The man, now 44, suffered a bone fracture, as well as muscle and nerve damage to his leg after being struck by the vehicle in the yard in July 2021. The incident happened on his first day in employment as a waste picker.

An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive found that the man had been hand picking waste since the conveyor belt used previously for the work had suffered significant damage in a fire a few months earlier, and been removed from service.

Employees were therefore required to work directly on the ground, near moving vehicles with no separation between them, putting the workers in considerable danger. There was no risk assessment and a lack of supervision for picking and sorting waste on the ground.

After the incident the man spent one week in hospital because of his injuries. He has now returned to work with a different company.

The HSE investigation also found the company had failed to ensure there were adequate measures in place for the safe segregation of vehicles and pedestrians. There was no risk assessment for this altered work activity after the fire and supervision and monitoring was inadequate.

Wheeldon Brothers Waste, of Bury New Road, Bury, Lancashire, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health & Safety at Work etc Act 1974, was fined £250,000 and ordered to pay £4102.32 costs at a hearing at Manchester Magistrates' Court on last week.

After the hearing, HSE principal inspector Lisa Bailey said: "This man is lucky to be alive.
Vehicles such as shovel loaders require plenty of space due to the number of blind spots and poor visibility.

"This incident was easily avoidable by implementing control measures and safe practises. Measures should have been implemented to ensure that workers present in the yard were not put at risk from moving vehicles in and around where they were working, including rigorous pedestrian and vehicle segregation and safe refuge for workers whilst vehicles are operating.

"This should be a reminder to the waste industry of the need to ensure that workplace transport is appropriately considered, with control measures introduced to ensure the appropriate separation of vehicles and pedestrians."

HSE guidance states that pedestrians and moving vehicles should be segregated when waste is being manually sorted. A safety bulletin was also issued a few months after this incident with specific guidance on the use of wheeled loading shovels.

CCTV footage of the incident, at the Mossdown Road site of Wheeldon Brothers Waste, can be viewed at: www.youtube.com

Guidance on working safely with vehicles in the workplace can be found at: www.hse.gov.uk

Further guidance can also be found at: www.wishforum.org.uk

17th April 2025