Case Study: Canberra Construction Company and Michael Booth's Death

This case study examines the death of Michael Booth, a 48-year-old man who was electrocuted at a Canberra construction site due to low-hanging power lines. The assignment analyzes the incident, the actions taken by authorities like ACT SAFEWORK, and the subsequent legal proceedings. It highlights the construction company's negligence in adhering to safety regulations, including a lack of risk assessment, inadequate communication of safety policies, and failure to address hazards promptly. The study discusses how the situation could have been handled differently, including better first aid, compensation for the family, and stricter enforcement of safety laws. The case study emphasizes the importance of workplace safety, risk management, and the legal responsibilities of employers to prevent such tragedies. The study also provides recommendations for improving safety protocols to prevent future accidents and ensure a safe working environment.

Running Head: CASE STUDY 1
Case Study on the Death of Michael Booth in a Canberra Construction Company
Student Name
University Affiliated

CASE STUDY 2
Introduction
According to Christian and Miriam (2016), the death of a North Korean who was
working at a shipyard in Gdansk region was caused by lack of necessary equipment and unsafe
practices. The employee was burnt around ninety-five (95) percent and he died instantly. The
question raised focuses on the responsible authorities undertaking the required steps to find out
what happened under such incidence. Besides, it is evident that the employers taken accountable,
and are always the victims being compensated. The main aim of this case study essay on the
death of a forty-eight-year-old man one Michael Booth is to help you understand how some of
these cases are always handled. It is to show you what really transpired that lead to his death at a
construction firm in Canberra. How the responsible authorities handled the matter, how they
should have handled it and what should have been done to avoid such an incident.
Relevant Literature
Risk management is defined as the process of identification, prioritization, as well as
assessment of risks. It also involves the coordination of economic application with the aim of
minimizing, monitoring, and controlling the possibility and impact of risk occurrence. In a
systematic study, Michael (2017) denotes that public awareness of possible risks and hazards in
the working place helps in enhancing the essentiality of safety management and assessment in
the current increasingly dangerous and litigious society. In other words, there is a need of
evaluating risks and safety related issues experienced in the workplace by adopting strategies
that are structured and calculated. Many people have died in the construction sites over the years,
most parties being either employee of the construction firm or the suppliers. In most occasions, it
has come out that most of this death is caused by the laxity of the employer to provide safety
equipment required for the task, employer not providing a safe working environment according

CASE STUDY 3
to the established standards or lack of adequate training by the employer. This paper evaluates
safety issues in reference to Canberra Construction Company.
The Actual Incident that Transpired and Actions Taken
According to Lisa (2012), Mr. Michael Booth a forty-eight-year-old was working for a
company that was supplying Canberra Construction firm known as Kenoss with construction
equipment. On the twenty-third day of March 2012 as he drove into the construction site, his
truck came into contact with an overhead electricity line that was hanging too low and he got
electrocuted in the incident. He could not see it because the area was covered with trees and
since it was a windy day, obviously the construction site was full of dust (Gordon, 2015). He was
found lying by his truck where he was rushed to the hospital and unfortunately died five days
later. According to Gordon (2015), his brother confirmed that he actually died due to the effect
of the electrocution and after his death, they donated his lungs and kidney to the hospital to help
those who needed such kind of transplant. They did this because Michael had requested it to be
done whenever he would have died.
According to Michael (2017), after the death of Michael Booth, there was an attempt by
Kenoss to alter his attendance record for that day to avoid any investigation that would have been
conducted but they did not manage to successfully do so. At the same time, the company was
going into liquidation and was dealing with a lot in terms of clearing with creditors and other
liquidation processes.
Social networking sites have revolutionized that Mark McCabe an ACT SAFEWORK
commissioner investigated the matter by visiting the site where the incident occurred,
interviewed the employers and employees of Kenoss even though it was going on liquidation and

CASE STUDY 4
found out that the company did not adhere to very many safety rules. While giving her ruling on
the case, ACT SAFEWORK Chief Magistrate Mrs. Walker mentioned that the exact issue which
caused the death was not carefully handled by the firm and that the risk was obvious. She went
ahead and clarified that in their investigation they learned that the employees of the firm were
informed not to use long equipment in the compound because of the low-hanging electricity
wires but the visitors were not informed about the issue. When Mark McCabe went to do
investigation he was not checked in, he was not informed about the safety rules within the site
and was made aware of the hanging electricity wires, “they only showed me what they wanted
me to see”, said Mark (Yass Tribune, 2012).
According to the evidence that was tabled in the ACT supreme court, the chief magistrate
Walker found the prosecution team was able to prove beyond any reasonable doubt that the
Construction firm Kenoss was guilty of breaching the work safety laws as charged (Charles,
Stephen & Michael, 2015). Mrs. Walker fined the company USD 1.1 million a sum which is said
to be the largest of all time in the history of such cases. This was to act as a warning to
companies who break the work safety laws (Clyde, 2017). The Manager was also arraigned in
court but it was ruled that he had no case to answer as an individual. Walker found out that the
prosecutor could not prove that he had responsibility for operations and that his role was to
simply manage.
What SAFEWORK Would Have Done Differently
In the ruling, it is noticed that the SAFEWORK Chief executive officer Mrs. Walker does
not give any recommendation on the sections of the law that she had noticed have hindered some
of the decision to be made by the court. According to Burchil (2015), the manager was not found
with any case to answer simply because the law does not place him in a position to be in charge

CASE STUDY 5
of operation in the site. These comprise of safety, we have seen this giving him a way out, but he
ought to be responsible since he was the one holding the highest rank in the site.
The General Manager informed the court that he was not qualified for the position, but
since he was related to the General Manager of the organization, it was given to him out of favor
(Clyde, 2017). The Chief Executive Officer Mrs. Walker should have held the General Manager
accountable through the Human Resource office for employing someone who is not qualified for
such a sensitive position thereby leading to the death of a forty-eight-year-old man who
obviously had mouths to feed and also a long life to live.
Another issue, which could have been handled differently, is compensation. According to
Lisa (2012), the court was doing sideway negotiations with the company to pay USD 300,000 to
the family. I feel that Mrs. Walker being the Chief Executive Officer of ACT SAFEWORK
should have included this in her ruling so that it becomes a mandatory issue for the firm and not
to be treated as a mere “gentleman agreement” which was done in a coffee shop. To be more
precise, three-quarters of the fine should have gone to the family. It could not have raised
Michael from death but at least it could have reduced the tears of the family. Who does not the
power of money? If this was not in the law then Mrs. Walker should have at least recommended
it.
The Setup of the Work Place
According to Lisa (2012), the site was located exactly beside the road since the firm was
constructing that road by that time. There was no sign warning where the electrical wires were
hanging, no flag attached to the lines to show people their danger and the wires were hanging

CASE STUDY 6
exactly where Michael was to offload. According to Gordon, (2015), the area was covered by
trees and it was a windy day, the area was full of dust and seeing clearly was a problem.
How the Safety Breach Would Have Been Avoided
The Death of Michael Booth was caused out of the negligence of the company in
following the safety rules of a workplace. One of the steps the Company should have taken is to
communicate the safety policy to both employees and visitors so that they become aware of any
danger they may get into when executing some of their duties within the company. According to
McPhaul (2012), all organizations are required to have the safety rules, if employees are more
than five, then the rules should on writing pined on a notice board or incorporated in the
employees’ handbook.
Another issue the Company should have considered is to do a risk assessment. Risk
assessment is the process of determining any possible outcome that can happen to employees or
visitor within the company during the daily operations (Kapp& Han (2017). The employer
should keep the findings of the assessment in a written form and clearly state the measures that
have been put in place to minimize such accidents. If this would have been done, Michael could
have been aware of the risk he might get himself in when off-loading his truck near the hanging
electricity wires.
To reduce this kind of safety breach the company should have dealt with any hazards
promptly. According to Nikraz and Chen (2016), most accidents and death in organizations are
mainly caused by preventable dangers and reducing such risk always requires straightforward
action. The hanging electricity lines were a straightforward risk that required quick repair to
avoid accident and death as witnessed in the case of the victim Michael Booth.

CASE STUDY 7
How I Would Have Handled the Issue if I Worked at the Company.
If I was the Manager of Kenoss Construction Company, I would have acted in a very
different manner. According to Gordon, (2015), Michael was rushed to the hospital that was not
close to the Company. The first thing I would have done is to make sure Michael got the first aid
right at the site before being taken to the hospital, this would have reduced the electrocution
effects. After the death of Michael, I would have advised the General Manager to compensate
Michael’s family rather than trying to delete his visiting records in the book. The electricity
company would have been a part of the case since they are liable to check that all the power lines
are maintained. Besides, the power lines should not be imposable to any threat to human life.
Conclusion
In all countries across the world, there are laws on matters of safety in a workplace.
Employers are expected to live up to these laws and failure to which may lead to criminal
prosecution in a magistrate court as was witnessed in this case of Michael Booth. Judges of the
magistrate court should impose very stiff rules on matters regarding human safety at the
workplace to avoid sad deaths like the one for Michael. I am impressed by the way in which the
Chief Magistrate of ACT SAFEWORK Mrs. Walker handled the case and gave her ruling.
Governments should hand over at least three-quarter of the fine to the bereaved family to help
them with their financial needs especially when if the victim was the breadwinner.

CASE STUDY 8
References
Alfers, L., Xulu, P., & Dobson, R. (2016). Promoting workplace health and safety in urban
public space: reflections from Durban, South Africa. Environment & Urbanization,
28(2),391-404.
Charles, P. Stephen, T & Michael, S. (2015). Work, health & Safety. Holding Redclich, 123(8),
1-5.
Stergiou-Kita, M., Mansfield, E., Colantonio, A., Moody, J., & Mantis, S. (2016). What's gender
got to do with it? Examining masculinities, health and safety and return to work in male
dominated skilled trades. Work, 54(3), 721-733.
Clyde, D. (2017). Construction company receives record NSW fine for electric shock. Lexology,
225(56), 1-4
Embracing Safety in the Workplace. (2016). Professional Safety, 61(8), 12.
Christian, V. & Miriam, W. (2016). How North Koreans Are Working Themselves to Death in
Europe. Cash for Kim, 5(1), 3-6.
Kapp, E. A., & Han, A. A. (2017). Integrating Health With Safety: Now Is the Time.
Professional Safety, 62(5), 44-49.
Gordon, T. (2015)ABC News. Retrieved from
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-08-19/construction-company-fined-1-million-over-workplace-
death/6708032
Lisa, C. (2012). A Work Place Tragedy. The Canberra Time, 1(1), 1-6.

CASE STUDY 9
McPhaul, K. (2012). Safety climate and workplace violence prevention in state-run residential
addiction treatment centers. Work, 42(1), 47-56.
Nikraz, H., & Chen, Y. (2016). A study of influences of the workers' compensation and injury
management regulations on aviation safety at a workplace. International Journal Of
Injury Control & Safety Promotion, 23(1), 99-104.
Michael, S. (2017). Electrical safety. Health & safety Handbook, 123(5) 3-8
Yass Tribune. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.yasstribune.com.au/story/215535/workplace-
death-raises-questions/
Elizabeth, B. (2015) ABC News. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-06-23/kenoss-
company-found-guilty-over-truck-drivers-electrocution/6568268
Burchill, C. (2015). Development of the Personal Workplace Safety Instrument for Emergency
Nurses. Work, 51(1), 61-66