SHIPPING giant Patrick has been convicted and fined $180,000 after the company was found guilty of discriminating against a worker who raised safety concerns about loading cargo.
It is the first discrimination prosecution since the introduction of new workplace health and safety laws in 2004.
The worker, an experienced stevedore and an elected health and safety representative, raised concerns about the safety of a new basket-lifting technique on three occasions in 2007.
He objected to using the method to load steel in and out of vessels after a request by a Patrick Stevedoring client.
In a meeting between the worker and a company manager, the manager threatened to dismiss the worker and stood him down for a week.
At a later date, the worker received a disciplinary letter with a number of complaints against him, including a claim that he had refused to indicate whether he would follow instructions to use the basket lift to load cargo.
In sentencing, Victorian magistrate Rosemary Carlin on Friday pointed to “serious instances of discriminating behaviour” and the need to deter other employers from discriminating against their workers.
Patrick Stevedoring pleaded not guilty to all charges.
WorkSafe executive director Ian Forsyth said raising health and safety issues to ensure a safe workplace was a necessity.
“Discriminating against someone who’s trying to speak up about safety issues isn’t something WorkSafe takes lightly – and this prosecution sends a clear message to all employers that it’s unacceptable,” he said.
A spokeswoman for Patrick said none of the managers implicated in the charges were still at the company.
In a statement Patrick said it had made “numerous improvements” to safety systems since the incidents in 2007 “and will review the court’s decision to ensure all improvement opportunities have been undertaken”.