A WODONGA company director has pleaded guilty to a workplace offence following the death of an employee.
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Father-of-four Adrian Heber, 33, was crushed by partially collapsed stairs at the SJ and TA Structural factory in Kane Road on August 18, 2016.
Director Simon Phillips pleaded guilty to a charge of failing to provide or maintain safe systems of work on behalf of the company in the Wodonga Magistrates Court on Thursday.
Employees were instructed to stack stairs in sets of three, supported by timber, rubber and steel, at the fabrication business.
The company did not use large enough bearers or sleepers to prevent the stairs from moving and hitting employees.
Charges note employees other than Mr Heber could have been at risk.
WorkSafe argued the company could have eliminated the risk to workers by not stacking the stairs at all, or taking other steps to eliminate “excessive bearing pressure on the stair angle cleats”.
The company had been charged with three offences in February and the matter was first heard before the Wodonga court briefly on March 6.
Two charges were dropped in court on Thursday.
An application to examine two witnesses in court was also withdrawn following the guilty plea.
The matter will return to the Wodonga County Court in February.
He had also worked as a trolley collector and at the Wodonga abattoirs before the fatal accident.