$218,000 safety spend for builder

The following is an abridgement of an article originally published by WorkSafe Victoria.

Enforceable Undertaking

A building company has entered into an enforceable undertaking to spend $218,000 to improve health and safety outcomes after inadequate fall prevention and poor housekeeping was found at a construction site in Donvale.

On 4 February 2026, the Melbourne Magistrates' Court heard the company had entered into the undertaking while facing three charges of failing to provide and maintain a safe working environment.

WorkSafe Victoria alleges the company failed to eliminate or reduce the risk to workers by using a passive fall prevention device such as scaffolding and by ensuring workers only gained access to the upper floors via a secured ladder.

Requirements

The $218,000 undertaking requires the company to support university research into precursors to adverse safety incidents in the building and construction sector and produce scenario‑based training materials, produce and publish educational safety videos concerning safe work method statements and fall‑from‑height hazards, and develop a mobile phone application with safety checklists, incident reporting and hazard tracking.

Chief Officer’s Statement

WorkSafe Chief Health and Safety Officer Sam Jenkin stated, "Principal contractors played a critical role in ensuring the health and safety of everyone working on a construction site.

While employees and contractors have obligations to protect both themselves and others, they rely on systems and processes being in place for their health and safety.

Falls from height in particular continue to cause needless tragedy in construction so it's encouraging to see meaningful steps have been taken since our intervention to prevent harm on this site and across the wider industry."