Contractor, worker fined following electric shock

A WA electrical contractor and worker have been fined a total of $15,000 for offences related to the supervision of an apprentice who received an electric shock at work.

Electrical worker Michael Georgiou was ordered to pay a $3000 fine and $553.80 in costs at Armadale Magistrates Court after pleading guilty to failing to effectively supervise the apprentice’s electrical work.

Earlier in the year, Mandurah-based electrical contractor Ballantyne Commercial Property Services, which employed Georgiou and the apprentice at the time of the incident, was fined $12,000 for not immediately reporting the electrical accident to the network operator.

Both of these matters are offences under WA’s Electricity (Licensing) Regulations 1991.

The court heard that Georgiou was the leading hand on a Ballantyne project in Beckenham alongside another electrical worker and the apprentice.

Georgiou was nearby but not directly supervising the apprentice when the younger man touched live wires while disconnecting cables in the ceiling space, receiving an electric shock.

Under the regulations, supervising electricians are required to ensure apprentices do not work on or near live electrical installations. The court was told Georgiou had previously de-energised the electrical circuits in the work area, but on the day of the incident he did not verify that the electricity supply to the circuits remained isolated.

WA’s Director of Energy Safety, Saj Abdoolakhan, said the apprentice was incredibly fortunate to have avoided serious or even fatal injury.

“The regulations explicitly state that effective supervision of electrical work is required to prevent danger to life and property,” Abdoolakhan said.

“This case should remind industry to always check the electrical installation is de-energised and safe to be worked on prior to starting work and to ensure that electrical work, particularly by apprentices, is effectively supervised.”

Image credit: iStock.com/Vladimir Cetinski