The Case

SafeWork NSW v All Seasons (Aust) Gourmet Produce NSW Pty Ltd; SafeWork NSW v Skevos Kakias (2022)

Skevos Kakias is the sole director of All Seasons (Aust) Gourmet Produce NSW Pty Ltd (All Seasons), which wholesales fruit and vegetable products to customers. Mr Kakias has been in charge of the business since 2005, working full-time, and routinely attending the site and observing workers on an almost daily basis.

On 24 December 2018, an untrained 21-year-old employee commenced his first shift at All Seasons. He was assigned the duty of operating a vegetable-cutting machine by loading spinach onto the conveyor belt. The employee, without direct supervision, placed his hand inside the machine to try to clear some jammed spinach. His hand was caught and pulled forward in the infeed conveyors, coming into contact with the rotating blades. The employee suffered a severe injury to his hand, which resulted in the amputation of three fingers from his right hand.