Kota Kinabalu: A company was fined RM5,000 or two months’ jail by the Sessions Court here, Tuesday, for failing to carry out supervision for work in the confined space.
Tetap Yakin Sdn Bhd, represented by its Managing Director pleaded guilty before Judge Elsie Primus to committing the offence at 2.30pm on Sept 27, 2019 at a roundabout Jalan Sembulan-Jalan Tunku Abdul Rahman here.
The charge stated that the company, as an employer, failed to ensure its obligations, as far as the practice of safety, health and welfare on its employees.
The company failed to supervise work in confined spaces at the Maktab Sabah Secondary School Infra Digital Project to comply with industry practices working safely inside confined space 2010.
The company was charged under Section 15(2)(c ) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1994 which provides for a fine of up to RM50,000, or a jail term of up to two years, or both, on conviction.
Prosecuting Officer Jason Ee Lung from the Department of Occupational Safety and Health told the court that the Department had on Sept 27, 2019 received a complaint regarding contractor work involving confine space at the said place without following the standard of operation and industry practice working safely in confined space.
The Managing Director requested for a lenient sentence as it was the company’s first offence and that after the incident the company had increased the level of security for their workers working on site.
The Managing Director also said after the incident their project was instructed to stop for weeks throughout Sabah.
“The project involved in the offence was not a big project and the amount of the project was only RM6,000.
“Our income was also affected at the time but we have also paid salaries to all workers including those who were not involved in the offence,” said the Managing Director.
Jason applied for an appropriate sentence and submitted that the department took the matter seriously.
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