Kentucky Fried ducks conviction

A fast food company that pleaded guilty to frying a 17-year-
old in a vat of oil has had an occupational health and safety 
(OH&S) conviction quashed on appeal. Daniel Guyomar was standing 
on a fryer to clean an extraction hood at a Kentucky Fried 
Chicken (KFC) outlet at Cranbourne when he fell into a deep 
fryer. He was hospitalised for 19 days following the 
incident.

Southern Restaurants, operators of the outlet, were fined $25,000 
by the Magistrate's Court. A Victorian judge overturned the 
conviction and the fine after hearing evidence the employee had 
received written procedures.

"The message that this sends is if you can afford to appeal then 
you can look forward to getting off", said Renata Musolino, a 
safety information officer for the Victorian Trades Hall Council. 
"Would KFC executives let their own children be treated like 
this?"

"Relying on written procedures when dealing with any employee is 
inappropriate", Ms Musolino pointed out. "Particularly young 
people who need to be supervised.

"The industrial conditions in the fast food industry mean that 
workers are often forced to take unsafe practices due to 
pressure."

The store where he suffered the injury was not Guyomar's normal 
workplace and he was unfamiliar with it. The job was usually done 
by another employee before the store opened before the fryer was 
turned on.

"The instructions he was given were laughable", said Ms Musolino. 
"One was basically, 'use a step ladder and don't fall off!'"

After the appeal the Cranbourne KFC restaurant franchisee was 
placed on a two-year good behaviour bond, without conviction, and 
ordered to donate $10,000 to charity.

WorkSafe Victoria's executive director, John Merritt, said with 
Christmas approaching and many young workers entering the 
workforce for the first time, employers had to look to training 
and supervision.

"Employers and workers need to realise that a serious injury 
received at 15, 16 or 17 might be with them for the next 60 
years", Mr Merritt said.

"Employers need to anticipate what could go wrong, and have the 
procedures to ensure it does not. Written procedures are only 
part of the story. They need to be followed. That's where 
supervision comes in.

"Young workers need to be careful, and ask their boss for help if 
they're not sure if they're working in a safe way."