Heinz Wattie's Limited have been fined over $300,000 after a boiling brine solution accidentally poured into a factory worker's gumboots burning their lower legs.
A statement from WorkSafe today says that in May 2017, at the company's Hastings factory, a vat that is used to make a brine solution used in multitude of food products boiled over.
As workers attempted to turn the machine off, the boiling brine overflowed and flowed into a worker's gumboots severely burning their lower legs.
According to WorkSafe Heinz Wattie's was "aware that the vats were likely to boil over if left unattended" and could cause injuries to workers.
An investigation found the brine was able to enter the worker's boots as they didn’t have the appropriate safety equipment and were not adequately trained or under proper supervision.
WorkSafe says "these vats had boiled over on numerous occasions in the past, resulting in burns to another worker on one occasion."
Heinz Wattie’s Limited was fined $281,250 and ordered to pay reparation of $50,000 to the victim.
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