Employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment

Legislation: Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (Vic) s 21

Maximum penalty: 1,800 penalty units (natural person); 9,000 penalty units (body corporate)

Period: 1 July 2019 to 30 June 2024

Jurisdiction: higher courts

Charges

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Cases

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All outcomes

Males

Females

Aged under 25

Aged 25 to 54

Aged 55 and over

*Note: unavailable options have under 10 cases

Charge data

In the higher courts, 44 charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment were sentenced in the five years to 30 June 2024. The most common sentence for a charge of this offence was a fine (97.7% or 43 charges).

On SACStat, a charge is a single count of a sentenced offence. Charge data is most useful in understanding how a specific crime is usually sentenced.

Case data

In 25 cases sentenced in the higher courts in the five years to 30 June 2024, employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment was the principal proven offence (the most serious crime in the case). Among the 25 cases, 1 person was male, 0 people were female and 24 companies were sentenced. The most common outcome for cases was a fine (96% or 24 cases).

A case is a collection of one or more charges against a person or company sentenced at the one hearing. Case data is most useful in understanding the total sentence usually imposed on people found guilty of a particular crime.

Bar graph showing sentence types imposed for charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 1**: Sentencing outcomes for all charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment
**Number: 44 charges**

Bar graph showing fine amounts for charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 5**: Fine amounts for charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment
**Number: 40 charges**
**Range and median**: The lowest fine amount is $10,000, the highest is $700,000, and the median is $262,500, meaning that half of the fine amounts are below $262,500 and half are above.
**Note**: The graph only includes fines that were not part of an aggregate sentence (non-aggregate fines).

Stacked bar graph showing sentences imposed each year for charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 6**: Sentencing outcomes for all charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment by financial year
**Number: 44 charges**

Bar graph showing the number of charges each year for the offence of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 7**: Number of charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment by financial year
**Number: 44 charges**

Bar graph showing fines amounts each year for charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 10**: Average fine amounts for charges of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment by financial year
**Number: 40 charges**
**Note**: The graph only includes fines that were not part of an aggregate sentence (non-aggregate fines).

Bar graph showing sentence types for all offenders for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 11A**: Sentencing outcomes for all people for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment
**Number: 25 cases**

Bar graph showing fine amounts for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 17**: Fine amounts for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment
**Number: 24 cases**
**Range and median**: The lowest fine amount is $50,000, the highest is $1,560,000, and the median is $322,500, meaning that half of the fine amounts are below $322,500 and half are above.

Stacked bar graph showing sentences imposed each year for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 18**: Sentencing outcomes for all cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment by financial year
**Number: 25 cases**

Bar graph showing the number of cases each year for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 19**: Number of cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment for all people by financial year
**Number: 25 cases**

Bar graph showing age groups of offenders for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 22A**: Ages of offenders (where age is known) for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment
**Number: 25 cases**

Bar graph showing gender of offenders for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 22B**: Gender of offenders (where gender is known) for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment
**Number: 25 cases**

Bar graph showing the number of charges in cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment — **Figure 22C**: Number of charges per case (of any sentenced offence) for cases of employer fail to provide and maintain a safe working environment
**Number: 25 cases**