Employers who sack staff for dangerous “planking” stunts have been defended by Gold Coast employment lawyer Brett Wilson who says employers could be hit with health and safety fines if staff are injured while planking.
He said the craze, which has already claimed one life in Australia, was dangerous because people doing it were trying to outdo others, with photos of themselves planking in increasingly dangerous places.
“One slip and injury and they’ll be quick to claim it’s a workplace injury and go for WorkCover compensation, which could mean higher premiums for the employers and negligence claims,” he said.
Mr Wilson, an employment law expert with Gold Coast law firm Aitken Wilson Lawyers, said Workplace Health and Safety inspectors would also be hot on any employer who allowed such antics to happen in the workplace.
“Employers would be mindful that, if someone was injured or worse, the employer could be hit with fines and damages for negligence.
“There’s a fundamental health and safety issue behind the zero tolerance policy on planking. It’s a fad but for employers, plankers are not welcome and there’s no room for complacency,” he said.
Mr Wilson said claims that some employers had sacked staff for planking ignored the wider health and safety issues. Planking required photos of people doing the stunt and that encouraged extremes.
“What started as people lying on the floor or on a desk has quickly escalated to photos of people on balcony railings, on chimneys and so on. The latest trend is planking at quite some height off the ground.
“These photos are uploaded to social network websites and it just spurs others to try and go one better. From a safety point of view, the fad is already out of hand. The Brisbane fatality should be a wakeup call to plankers of the risks.
“I expect employers will take a tougher line on the stunt, because it poses a serious threat to workplace health and safety and it’s also a disruptive influence on other staff,” Mr Wilson said.
He said employers defending unjustified dismissal claims from sacked staff could muster plenty of evidence to show the planking fad was dangerous and staff who defied workplace rules and did it should know their jobs could be jeopardised if they defied the workplace safety rules.
