Canberra's Capitol Chilled Foods fined $300,000 after man's leg was crushed in forklift accident

CCTV footage shown to the court of the workplace accident at Capitol Chilled Foods.

A Canberra man who was crushed by a forklift while at work says he hopes a fine of $300,000 is a warning to other companies.

Matthew Thompson's leg was broken in six places while he was working in the yard at Capitol Chilled Foods in 2021.

Capitol Chilled Foods has previously pleaded guilty in the ACT Magistrates Court to the charge of a category two safety breach of causing a risk of death or serious injury.

Magistrate James Lawton today handed issued the company with a fine of $300,000.

Magistrate Lawton said the risk of a worker being seriously injured or killed was known and foreseeable by the company.

The court was previously shown CCTV footage of the accident, which showed the forklift driving into Mr Thompson, crushing his leg.

Matthew Thompson's leg was crushed in a workplace accident while working at Capitol Chilled Foods. (ABC News: Elizabeth Byrne)

The defence applied for the company to have two months to pay the fine, which Magistrate Lawton allowed.

Mr Thompson had previously told the court, via his victim impact statement, that he had feared losing his leg and had undergone several operations.

He said he experienced significant pain at the time after the accident and one leg was now shorter than the other.

The magistrate acknowledged that the company had since implemented a number of safety measures and at the time of the accident, the site was shut down and counselling was offered to employees.

He also acknowledged the company had agreed it had failed to provide adequate training for its employees.

In a statement, ACT Work Health and Safety Commissioner Jacqueline Agius said the $300,000 fine reflected the seriousness of the incident.

"Today's sentencing gives a clear message to all duty holders, they must comply with their work health and safety obligations and if they don't, they will be held to account," she said.

"What happened to Mr Thompson shouldn't happen to any worker, any family, any community. Every worker has the right to a safe workplace and the right to return home safely at the end of their shift."

Capitol Chilled Foods is now owned by the Bega company but the incident took place prior to the transfer of ownership.