Paphos, Cyprus. Three companies were fined a total of €55,000 by the Paphos district court over health and safety breaches linked to a fatal workplace accident, the labour inspection department said on Wednesday. The prosecutions followed an investigation into the death of a worker at a construction site.
Court fines three companies
The prosecutions were brought by the labour ministry’s department following findings that violations of health and safety regulations resulted in the worker’s death.
K Aristodemou (Sideras) Ltd, involved in the processing and installation of reinforcement steel, was fined €22,000 for breaches of the Employers’ Liability Compulsory Insurance Laws of 1989-2014 and the Safety and Health at Work Regulations of 2015.
The court found that the company had failed to ensure the use of safety harnesses with sufficiently strong safety straps equipped with anti-fall mechanisms and/or energy absorbers. One of its employees fell from a height of about eight metres and sustained fatal injuries.
The company was also found to have failed to maintain insurance cover against liability arising from accidents or occupational diseases affecting its employees.
Main contractor and project owner
S Georgiou Construction Ltd, the main contractor on the project, was fined €20,000 for breaches of the Safety and Health at Work (Minimum Requirements for Temporary or Mobile Construction Sites) Regulations of 2015 in the same case.
Celicandia Ltd, the project owner, was fined €6,500 for breaches of the same regulations that exposed employees and other persons to the risk of injury.
According to the court’s findings, Celicandia Ltd failed to submit advance notification of the construction site and the required documentation to the district labour inspection office in Paphos.
It also failed to ensure that the project’s health and safety plan was updated in a timely manner to specify the required working methods and technical measures.
Individuals also convicted
The court also convicted three individuals for breaches of the regulations governing temporary or mobile construction sites.