A prohibition notice is not a suggestion

In early September WorkSafe released the sentencing of Grace Motors Limited, trading as Grace Construction. Back in 2024, an inspector found workers on the second floor of two-storey residential units in Kelston, Auckland, without adequate fall protection. The site had temporary platforms, scaffolding that had been partly removed, and ladders that weren't secured.

The inspector issued a prohibition notice: no work at height on that floor until fall protection was in place. Within days, workers were back up there. In August the company was fined $38,500 in the Waitakere District Court, plus costs.

WorkSafe area manager Parani Wiki put it plainly: "A prohibition notice is issued because an inspector believes there is a serious risk to health and safety. It is not a suggestion."

We agree, and we'd add this. In our experience a notice gets ignored for the same reason the edge was unprotected in the first place. The job has to keep moving, and the fix looks bigger than it is: more scaffold, another day, another trade to line up. So the crew makes do. That happens on plenty of sites that never see an inspector.

The answer is to make the safe way the easy way before anyone is standing near an open edge. A control that stops a fall from happening sits above one that deals with a fall once it has started, and well above a ladder and good intentions.

The practical takeaway: at this week's pre-start, ask one question about every upper-floor task. What are we standing on, and what stops us going over the edge? If the answer is "a ladder" or "we'll be careful", sort it before the tools come out, not after an inspector does.

Source: WorkSafe New Zealand, "Company falls short after ignoring WorkSafe notice" (worksafe.govt.nz, September 2026).