A Richmond frozen food manufacturer has been convicted and fined $180,000 after a worker’s finger was crushed in a dough-mixing machine — the sixth time the company has faced prosecution over inadequate machinery guarding, and the sixth time workers have paid the price for its failure to act.
Makmur Enterprises Pty Ltd was sentenced at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court after pleading guilty to failing to provide a safe working environment and an interlocking guard. In October 2024, a worker was using a metal scraper to move dough closer to the rotating agitator of a mixing machine when the scraper struck the agitator blade. The worker’s finger was caught between the scraper and another part of the machine, causing a laceration that required hospital treatment.
A WorkSafe Victoria investigation found that while Makmur had installed a metal grill to reduce access to the rotating agitator blades, there were large gaps that still allowed workers to reach their hands or arms into the danger area. The company admitted it was reasonably practicable to have used a combination of fixed and openable guarding connected to an interlock — a control that would have prevented access to the danger zone while the machine was operating.
WorkSafe Victoria Chief Health and Safety Officer Sam Jenkin said the outcome reflected a pattern of brazen disregard. ‘This is the sixth time Makmur has been prosecuted over inadequate guarding on their machinery, leaving workers with hands and fingers degloved, crushed, lacerated and amputated,’ he said. ‘WorkSafe has a trove of guidance on how to properly guard machinery and we also offer free, independent safety consultations to help manufacturing employers meet their obligations — so there really are no excuses.’
The company’s total penalties across six prosecutions now exceed $525,000. Its history of offending dates back to 2014 and involves a succession of incidents in which workers were injured by unguarded or inadequately guarded plant at its Richmond factory.
The case is a pointed reminder to all manufacturing employers that machinery guarding is a legal obligation — not a discretionary measure. Employers are required to eliminate or control the risk of contact with dangerous moving parts, using interlocked guards that prevent access to danger areas while machinery is operating. Where guarding has previously been found inadequate, regulators will look closely at what systemic changes have been made — and whether they have actually been implemented.
