A Melbourne food wholesaler has been fined a record $3.4 million for workplace manslaughter after a worker fell about four metres to his death — the largest fine ever imposed for a single offence under Victoria’s workplace safety laws. Sentenced on 25 June 2026, the case is a blunt warning to every business that puts people anywhere near a fall risk.
Key facts at a glance
- $3.4 million fine — the largest for a single offence in the history of Victoria’s workplace safety laws, handed down in the Supreme Court on 25 June 2026.
- Risham Nominees Pty Ltd, trading as Centenary Bakehouse, pleaded guilty to workplace manslaughter over a 2021 fatal fall at its Reservoir bakery.
- A 53-year-old worker removing ceiling insulation panels fell about four metres, suffering fatal head injuries.
- WorkSafe found no fall controls were in place — and although harnesses were available on site, workers were not required to use them.
- It is only Victoria’s second workplace manslaughter prosecution since the offence commenced in 2020 — and penalties are climbing nationally.
- Queensland courts recorded their first industrial manslaughter conviction against a mining employer in March 2026 — a $7 million penalty (currently under appeal).
What happened in this case?
According to WorkSafe Victoria, the company was upgrading ceilings at its Reservoir bakery and engaged three workers to remove large insulation panels suspended in the roof space. In August 2021, a 53-year-old worker fell approximately four metres to the ground and died of head injuries.
The WorkSafe investigation found the company had not referred to any industry standard or guidance material before starting the work, and had no control measures in place to reduce or eliminate the fall risk. Harnesses were available at the workplace, but workers were not required to wear them. The court heard it was reasonably practicable to have used an independent scaffold system — such as a birdcage scaffold — and that failing to do so fell well short of the standard a reasonable person would have exercised.
The company pleaded guilty to engaging in negligent conduct that breached a duty owed to another person and caused their death, and was convicted and fined $3.4 million in the Victorian Supreme Court.
Why is this fine significant?
Three reasons. It is the largest fine ever imposed for a single offence under Victorian workplace safety law. It is only the state’s second prosecution under the workplace manslaughter provisions introduced in 2020 — confirming regulators will use them. And it lands amid a national escalation in penalties for fatal safety failures.
| Case (public court record) | Jurisdiction | Outcome | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fatal four-metre fall during ceiling works — workplace manslaughter | Victoria (Supreme Court) | $3.4 million — record single-offence fine | June 2026 |
| First industrial manslaughter conviction of a mining employer (underground roof collapse) | Queensland (District Court) | $7 million + costs (appeal lodged) | March 2026 |
| String of working-at-height offences across multiple employers | Victoria | About $700,000 in combined fines | February 2026 |
| Worker struck by a forklift while loading a truck | New South Wales (Industrial Court) | $450,000 fine | 2026 |
The pattern is unmistakable: courts are treating preventable deaths and serious incidents as corporate crimes with seven-figure consequences, not administrative breaches.
Could this prosecution happen in Queensland?
Yes. Queensland introduced industrial manslaughter offences in 2017 — earlier than Victoria — carrying maximum penalties in the tens of millions of dollars for corporations and up to 20 years’ imprisonment for individuals. The state recorded its first industrial manslaughter conviction against a mining employer in March 2026, with a $7 million penalty (under appeal). Queensland’s WHS regulator also prosecutes falls cases regularly under the Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld), where the duty to manage fall risks applies to any fall that could injure a worker — not just work above a particular height.
What does the case say about working at heights duties?
The court’s reasoning turned on basics, not technicalities. The company had not consulted available guidance, had not planned the work, had no controls in place and did not require the use of equipment it already owned. WorkSafe’s Chief Health and Safety Officer put it plainly: working at height is one of the most obvious and well-understood workplace risks, and failing to protect workers from it is “beyond inexcusable.”
Regulators expect employers to work through the falls hierarchy of control — eliminating work at height where possible, preferring passive protection such as scaffolds, guardrails and elevating work platforms, and treating harnesses and administrative controls as last-line measures. Where this case failed was earlier and more fundamental: nobody with current competency assessed the task before workers went up.
The compliance takeaway: a fall does not need to be from a great height to be fatal — this worker fell about four metres. If your people work off ladders, platforms, rooftops or in roof spaces, you need trained, competent workers and documented controls before the job starts, every time.
Who needs working at heights training?
Any worker who could fall and be injured — construction, maintenance, warehousing, manufacturing, telecommunications, cleaning, solar and roofing trades among them — and the supervisors who plan and sign off their work. Formal training is how a business demonstrates its workers were competent, and it is one of the first records a regulator requests after an incident.
FMS Training (RTO 45189) delivers the nationally recognised unit RIIWHS204E – Work Safely at Heights in person at our Lawnton training centre, north of Brisbane, with onsite delivery available at your workplace for teams. Course details, dates and inclusions are on the Working at Heights course page, and our guide to the working at heights ticket in Brisbane covers what the statement of attainment involves. For more on how courts are treating safety failures, see our report on the $450,000 forklift fine.
Frequently asked questions
What was the record $3.4 million workplace manslaughter fine for?
A Victorian food wholesaler was convicted of workplace manslaughter after a 53-year-old worker fell about four metres while removing ceiling insulation panels and died of head injuries. The company had no fall controls in place.
Is $3.4 million the largest workplace safety fine in Victoria?
It is the largest fine for a single offence in the history of Victoria’s workplace safety laws, according to WorkSafe Victoria.
What is workplace manslaughter?
A criminal offence, in force in Victoria since 2020, committed when negligent conduct by an employer breaches a safety duty and causes a person’s death. Most Australian jurisdictions now have an equivalent industrial manslaughter offence.
Does Queensland have industrial manslaughter laws?
Yes — since 2017. Corporations face maximum penalties in the tens of millions of dollars and individuals up to 20 years’ imprisonment. Queensland recorded a $7 million industrial manslaughter penalty in March 2026 (under appeal).
At what height do working at heights duties apply?
There is no blanket minimum. Under WHS laws the duty to manage fall risk applies to any fall that could cause injury — the worker in this case died after a fall of about four metres inside a building.
Were harnesses enough in this case?
Harnesses were available but not required to be used, and no other controls were in place. The court found an independent scaffold system was the reasonably practicable control the company should have used.
What training covers working at heights?
RIIWHS204E – Work Safely at Heights, a nationally recognised unit of competency. FMS Training (RTO 45189) delivers it in person at Lawnton, north of Brisbane, with onsite delivery available for workplace teams.
How does training protect a business after an incident?
Training records are among the first evidence a regulator requests. Current, nationally recognised training helps demonstrate workers were competent and the business took its duty seriously — a key factor in enforcement decisions.
Sources: WorkSafe Victoria — Bakery fined record $3.4 million for workplace manslaughter (25 June 2026); WorkSafe Victoria — $700,000 in fines for string of working at height offences (February 2026); Resources Safety & Health Queensland — $7M penalty in first industrial manslaughter conviction; WorkSafe Queensland — Penalties; training.gov.au — RIIWHS204E Work Safely at Heights.