$37,500 fine for workplace death

Di Groeneveld and her husband, Alan, had been together for more than half their lives - until a workplace accident cost Alan's life.

By 2005, they had weathered financial hardship and finally bought their first home.

But their joy was cruelly stolen when Alan, 34, suffered a fatal electric shock while working on a neon sign.

Today, Mrs Groeneveld sat in the Industrial Magistrates Court as her husband's employer was convicted and fined $37,500 for failing to provide a safe workplace.

"The full impact of suddenly losing your best friend, father of your children, lover and soul mate simply cannot be described," she said in a statement.

"We'd been together since high school and married at 19.

"We did it tough, but we knew we could do it - we never doubted it because we were a team.

"Life goes on, but the reality that he's really gone still hasn't fully sunk in."

Alan Groeneveld died on January 31, 2005 while working on a car dealership sign above Main North Road.

In his judgement, Industrial Magistrate Stephen Lieschke said Mr Groeneveld was "leaning over a parapet wall" at the time.

"Whilst apparently changing the (sign's) top tube, his left hand came into contact with the end of a loose wire," he said.

"The wire delivered a fatal electric shock."

Mr Lieschke said Mr Groeneveld and his co-worker had neither harnesses nor insulated equipment.

Their employer, Grant McIvor, had never established written safe-working procedures.

Nor had he acted on warnings the sign had no "local isolation switch" to disconnect its power supply.

"Relying on the experience and competence of employees to work out safety for themselves is not sufficient," he said.

"Workplace safety can only be secured by a dynamic or active approach to hazards."

He convicted Mr McIvor - who had pleaded guilty - and fined him $37,500, plus a further $9000 for failing to provide a safe workplace for Mr Groeneveld's co-worker.

Mrs Groeneveld and her daughters have already received compensation.

Source: Sean Fewster, Adelaide Now