Cleanzine: your weekly cleaning and hygiene industry newsletter 10th July 2025 Issue no. 1170
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Firm fined more than £500,000 after shift worker fell to his death
A North Yorkshire company has been fined more than half a million pounds after a night shift worker fell approximately three metres to his death. Mark Pinder, 51, was working for East Riding Sacks, a manufacturer of paper sacks, when the incident happened in 2023.
Mr Pinder had been operating one of the production lines when a blockage occurred on the upper deck of the machinery. After identifying the cause, he attempted to remove the blockage. He had been standing on the stationery metal rollers when his colleagues witnessed part of the machine being activated. He was struck by the machine which caused him to lose his footing, causing him to fall from the unguarded edge of the metal rollers to the factory floor below.
Although paramedics were called to the factory, Mr Pinder died at the scene as a result of his injuries.
An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive found that East Riding Sacks failed to provide a robust safe system of work. This related to the isolation of the sack making line and the removal of blockages. It also failed to identify the risk from a fall from height and implement appropriate measures.
Falls from height remains one of the leading causes of workplace injury and death and HSE has detailed guidance on working safely at height.
The investigation also found that workers routinely cleared blockages themselves, relying solely on the interlock guarding to stop the machine, even though they had not been adequately trained in isolation or blockage removal procedures.
In addition, workers were using the conveyor belt as a shortcut between gantries, often climbing over the handrails onto the equipment rather than down the stairs and walking around. Management was unaware of this practice.
East Riding Sacks, of Full Sutton Industrial Estate, York, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974. The company was fined £533,000 and ordered to pay £6,066 in costs.
"Every year, a significant proportion of accidents, many of them serious and often fatal, occur as a result of people accessing dangerous parts of machinery and working at height," warns HSE inspector Elliot Archer.
"Where access beyond machinery guarding and safety devices is required for the removal of blockages, robust isolation procedures to remove all sources of power should be implemented alongside a suitable safe systems of work.
"Had these been in place, and the recognition of work at height being undertaken been flagged by the company, with appropriate controls implemented, this incident would have been avoidable."
HSE guidance states employers must take effective measures to prevent access to dangerous parts of machinery and to avoid work at height where possible. Where routine access is required to components, suitable measures should be taken to stop the movement of dangerous parts before a person can reach a danger zone. Further guidance can be found at:
3rd July 2025