Billboard call for manslaughter law

Date: 15 January 2003

The CFMEU will join with other blue collar Unions today to launch four billboards calling for the introduction of industrial manslaughter legislation into state law.

The billboards will be launched today at noon on the corner of Victoria and Darling Streets Rozelle and stay up until March.

CFMEU State President Peter McClelland believes industrial manslaughter legislation is overdue in NSW.

"Building workers and their families are sick of the avoidable carnage in our industry

Carnage such as the preventable death a few years back of 19 year old Tamworth boy Dean McGoldrick. In his first week of his first job Dean died from a fall here in Sydney. He had been provided no safety training and no safety harness while working on a roof. His boss was fined $20,000 for doing everything wrong. The boss is still in business. We say he should be in jail.

Or take the case of another teenager Selwyn Wano. He died in a demolition collapse in East Sydney. In his case the boss wound up the company to avoid paying the fine!

A building worker has died in Sydney already this year. Nearly 30 die in NSW every year.

If you kill someone on the road and you are intoxicated you can go to jail.

If you kill someone at work through negligence there should be the same standard applied -a range of options including prison and disqualification from being a company director.

Our members and their families deserve no less."

For further information

Contact:	Phil Davey
Union:	CFMEU
Phone:	0414 867188

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