A Victorian construction company is facing multiple charges after a worker fell nearly four metres while using a chainsaw on an A-frame ladder, in an incident WorkSafe Victoria says highlights critical failures in high-risk work planning.

The 28-year-old worker was attempting to cut a tree branch with a chainsaw when he fell almost four metres to the ground in March 2024. IntraAust Properties Pty Ltd faces four charges under section 21(1) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act for failing to provide and maintain, so far as reasonably practicable, a working environment that was safe and without risks to health.

WorkSafe alleges the company failed to engage a qualified arborist or tree removal specialist, failed to provide a temporary work platform or telescopic long chainsaw, failed to reduce fall risks through the use of a passive fall prevention device, and failed to prepare a Safe Work Method Statement for the high-risk work.

The company also faces two additional charges under section 26(1) of the OHS Act for failing to ensure a workplace under its management and control was safe and without risks to health. The matter was listed for a filing hearing at Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on 20 March 2026.

The case serves as a pointed reminder to PCBUs that specialist tasks — including tree removal and arborist work — require appropriately qualified contractors, documented safe work methods, and adequate fall prevention controls. Using an A-frame ladder as a working platform for chainsaw operations does not satisfy the obligations imposed under the hierarchy of controls for work at height.