The court heard the company operations manager had failed to rectify workplace hazards on the Craven Rd property following an inspection of machinery.
A plea of guilty was entered by Allendale Pty Ltd directors Nick and Sam Zurcas.
Magistrate Victoria Campbell placed the company on an adjourned undertaking to be of good behaviour for 12 months, after hearing submissions from the defence about circumstances surrounding the breach. The company was ordered to pay court costs of $4678.
Ms Campbell acknowledged the offences occurred in 2021 when the COVID-19 pandemic was at its peak.
She said the improvement orders were issued at harvest time and they were, at best, mislaid, and at worst, ignored.
However once the issues were brought to the attention of the directors they were addressed, and the company had no prior convictions.
She also noted the breaches came about not as a result of a complaint, but due to a routine inspection under a WorkSafe program.
A workplace inspector visited the orchard in February but the improvement notices had not been complied with between March and June.
The eight charges related to:
- An unguarded slasher with unprotected joints;
- A spray unit with exposed drive shaft, and exposed universal joint and fan;
- An unguarded spray unit engine;
- Unguarded shaft and joints on a slasher;
- A sprayer with an unguarded PTO;
- An unguarded tractor PTO;
- An orchard sprayer with an unguarded PTO.
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