Construction company fined 20,000 euros for worker’s death – Lack of safety measures highlighted

A fine of 20,000 euros, including 10,000 suspended, for a construction company based in Pontet, near Avignon. The company “JH Waterproofing” was found guilty this Tuesday, April 16, 2024 for not ensuring the safety of a worker who died at work two years earlier, in February 2022. Hassan, a 52-year-old man, fell from the roof of the Henri Bosco school while starting a roof renovation project. A fall of four meters. Although it was not the leader of the company that was being judged, but the company itself, he was the one who took the stand. In particular, it was discussed that safety regulations were not being respected.

Lack of security measures

“The workers worked like acrobats without nets“… the words of the public prosecutor summarize well what happened on February 7, 2022. The manager of the company, who is still shocked by this tragedy, gives details of the truth, speaking of “the loss of a friend, even a brother“. Hassan, the worker, manages this site only. The boss is on vacation. He trusts him completely. That day, it was windy, and not only heavy storms, usually falling on Le Pontet. the workers should not even have been working in these conditions. Security systems on the construction site are also identified. On site, no scaffolding, no safety net, no rails, no harness. In short, nothing could have avoided this disaster.

The boss explains on the stand that the workers had to install anchor points, a device that allows you to hang on the ceiling, which they don’t have time to do. The lawyer for the head of Vaucluse explained that “JH Intégration” was only a subcontractor on this site. He blames the company that managed the work, “Alpha services”. Except that the latter were not prosecuted in this case.