Bahrain: Two Jailed For Negligence Resulting In Worker’s Death
The Court of Cassation has issued its final ruling, upholding the three-month imprisonment of two defendants whose negligence resulted in the death of a worker due to their failure to comply with occupational safety standards.
Specifically, the defendants failed to secure an effective device to prevent the crane from detaching from the hook.
According to the details provided, the victim was carrying out his work in the painting department of a specialised facility for electrical installations. He had been assigned to paint a recently repaired electrical cooler, which required lifting using an overhead crane.
However, due to the second defendant’s failure to install an additional lifting ring on the electrical cooler, allowing for horizontal lifting instead of vertical lifting, the cooler, which weighed approximately one ton, fell on the worker, causing fatal injuries.
Misdemeanor offense
Consequently, the Public Prosecution charged the defendants with a misdemeanor offense. The first defendant, as the company manager, was held responsible for failing to install an effective device to prevent the crane rope from detaching from the hook.
Additionally, he failed to train the victim on operating the overhead crane and safety protocols. Furthermore, he did not assess the lifting operations carried out by the facility, which posed risks to the safety and health of the workers.
The second defendant, as the workshop manager in the company specialising in electrical machinery manufacturing, was charged with failing to ensure the safe use, handling, transportation, and storage of goods and materials, so as not to endanger the workers’ health and safety.
Violations
During the trial sessions, the defendants’ defence argued that they were not responsible for the incident as the violations occurred outside the scope of their duties. They claimed that the victim himself was at fault for not securing the device to prevent the crane rope from detaching from the hook.
Initially, the Lower Court acquitted the defendants of the charges. However, the Public Prosecution appealed the verdict to the Court of Appeals, which overturned the previous ruling and sentenced the defendants to three months in prison. Dissatisfied with the decision, the defendants decided to file an appeal with the Court of Cassation.
Ultimately, the Court of Cassation rejected their appeal and upheld the previous judgment, confirming the three-month prison sentence for the defendants.
