Judge accepts safety appeal was one-off but breach was serious

ML Roberts Electrical had two apprentices work on a Huntly roof without guardrails on July 23. A magistrate fined the company $12,500. At the appeal, the judge accepted it was a one-off case and the company quickly fixed the problem, but said the safety breach risked serious injury or death.

Why it mattersThe case reinforces that employers cannot skip basic protective measures. Even when companies cooperate fully and fix problems quickly, courts treat serious safety breaches as serious.

AustraliaThis ruling affects all Australian construction and solar firms about what WorkSafe considers non-negotiable safety standards, especially for apprentices on heights.

✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 2 h ago