Two forestry companies have been ordered to pay more than $335,000 in fines and reparation following the preventable death of a subcontracted worker at a Clevedon site.
The Manukau District Court ruling on March 4 found both Turoa Logging Limited and Pulley Contracting Limited failed in their duty to ensure adequate safety measures were in place when 39-year-old Ukrainian-born tree feller Misha Tremel was killed in June 2022.
The incident occurred while Tremel was manually harvesting windthrown pine trees – a practice explicitly cautioned against by industry standards, which recommend mechanized equipment for such hazardous conditions.
"Businesses must manage their risks and cannot contract their way out of responsibility," said Paul West, WorkSafe's area investigation manager. "Contractors on smaller sites like this are owed the same level of care as those in large-scale operations.”
WorkSafe's investigation revealed multiple failures across the operation. Turoa Logging failed to update its risk assessment after initial mechanical clearing altered site conditions, while Pulley Contracting provided insufficient supervision as the primary forest manager.
The forestry sector continues to have New Zealand's highest workplace fatality rate, with 16.58 deaths per 100,000 workers recorded in 2024. In response, WorkSafe has redirected 15% of its enforcement resources toward addressing safety issues in the industry, with particular focus on reducing harm among Māori workers, who are disproportionately affected.
“Businesses must consult, cooperate and coordinate as part of a contracting chain. WorkSafe recommends health and safety is always built into contract management,” West said.
Both companies were prosecuted under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 for failing to ensure worker safety, with maximum penalties of up to $1.5 million possible under the legislation.
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