Central Otago orchard fined nearly $300,000 after worker’s hands caught in conveyor belt

Cherry grower Clyde Orchards (1990) Ltd had been sentenced for health and safety failures related to the incident in 2021. Photo / Duncan Brown

Clyde Orchards has been hit with nearly $300,000 worth of penalties after a worker suffered serious injury to his hands in its packing shed.

The teenage worker needed three fingers partly amputated when his summer holiday job went horribly wrong in a workplace incident with a leading stone fruit producer in Central Otago in February 2021.

Matthew Nevill, who was 19 at the time, was trying to fix a chain on a conveyor belt at Clyde Orchards when his hands were drawn into the machine.

He had two fingers fractured on his left hand and needed surgery to partly amputate three fingers on his right.

Worksafe said in a press release yesterday a reserved decision of the Alexandra District Court says Clyde Orchards (1990) Limited had been sentenced for its health and safety failures related to the incident.

A WorkSafe investigation found poor safeguarding of the machinery and an inadequate risk assessment contributed to the man’s injuries.

There were also no lockouts to safely isolate and de-energise the parts of machinery that could cause harm to workers.

The conveyor involved has been decommissioned.

“The injuries in this case were significant and affected the independence of Mr Nevill, who was on his fifth consecutive summer working for Clyde Orchards,” WorkSafe’s area investigation manager Steve Kelly said.

“Although he was the unfortunate victim, it could have been anyone on staff given the risks that were present.

“Seasonal workers are just as entitled to health and safety protection as those who work year-round in a business.

“The shortcomings in this case are simply not good enough when we know seasonal workers are at greater risk of workplace harm.

“Seasonal work and tasks like harvest can put a huge amount of pressure on everyone involved, so managing the risks is essential. The lives, health and wellbeing of workers must be your number one priority.

“We will continue to hold manufacturers to account for failing in their health and safety responsibilities.”

Clyde Orchards was sentenced in a reserved decision from the Alexandra court on September 1 this year. 

A fine of $225,000 was imposed. Reparations of $62,645 were ordered, but $25,000 of this was paid before sentencing.

Clyde Orchards was charged under sections 36(1)(a), 48(2)(c), of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015. 

Being a PCBU (a person conducting a business or undertaking) having a duty to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of workers who work for the PCBU, while the workers are at work in the business or undertaking, namely work involved in the packhouse operation, did fail to comply with that duty, and that failure exposed workers to risk of serious injury.

The maximum penalty is a fine of not more than $1.5 million.