'Chapter closing': outlier passes workplace safety laws

For two decades Guy Hudson has been fighting for justice after his 16-year-old son Matthew died in a forklift rollover at work. 

He has finally marked the closing of a chapter after Tasmania joined the rest of Australia in passing industrial manslaughter laws. 

It means corporations and individuals can be charged for negligence or breach of duty over a death at work.

Maximum penalties are 21 years' jail and fines of up to $18 million for corporations.

Mr Hudson said his campaign for industrial manslaughter laws was not just about Matthew but to ensure everyone's loved ones were safe at work. 

Guy Hudson
Guy Hudson campaigned for change after his teenage son dies in a workplace accident 20 years ago.

Matthew was killed at a meatworks in Tasmania's north in 2004 when the forklift he was operating rolled. He did not have a licence to operate the machinery. 

The meatworks owner was fined $75,000 after a court appeal for failing to ensure a worker was safe while the contractor involved was found not liable. 

"The hardest grief to live with is the loss of a child. Today my wife and I can close that chapter of our lives," Mr Hudson said on Wednesday. 

"For all those workers who have lost their lives ... Tasmania now has a law that will give families some justice and safe work practices." 

Between 2012 and 2022, 85 work-related deaths occurred in the island state, according to Unions Tasmania.

"(These laws have) been a long time coming and we can finally say Tasmania is an outlier no more," union secretary Jessica Munday said. 

"It would be great not to need these laws … but they're an important part of our safety system that has been missing." 

The legislation, which passed Tasmania's upper house on Tuesday, was opposed by the state's Liberal minority government. 

The bill was put forward by Labor, with Opposition Leader Dean Winter saying it sends a clear message to employers. 

Tasmanian Labor Opposition Leader Dean Winter
The legislation was proposed by Opposition Leader Dean Winter.

Liberal upper house MP Leonie Hiscutt said the government maintained its position that a specific industrial manslaughter offence was not needed. 

"Tasmania is well served by existing criminal laws, including our broad crime of manslaughter in the criminal code," she said during parliamentary debate.

"The reality is that there are likely to be very few cases that might justify a charge of manslaughter.

"Criminal, gross or culpable negligence ... has not been present in workplace fatalities to date." 

Tasmania's Small Business Council had urged politicians to not support the law changes, saying owners wouldn't have the money to defend themselves in court. 

Mr Hudson urged businesses to reach out to the regulator to ensure operations were best practice.

NSW in June became the final mainland state to pass industrial manslaughter laws, carrying penalties of up to 25 years' jail and a $20 million fine for corporations.

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