SAINSBURY’S has been fined £10,000 following two separate incidents in a North-East store which left one female shop assistant with a broken bone in her spine after a cage stacked with dog food toppled over and trapped her underneath.

The prosecution was brought by Middlesbrough Council after Environmental Health Officers from its Public Protection Service investigated two serious accidents at the Saltersgill Avenue supermarket in September 2011.

Sainsbury’s said it constantly monitored and trained staff on safer working and had added several checks and reminders to ensure to ensure roll cages were loaded safely in its depots.

The first accident happened when a fully loaded roll cage moved from the back of a delivery vehicle by a shop assistant fell over, knocking her to the ground which resulted in a broken bone in her spine and a broken leg.

The cage had been fully loaded with goods including tins of dog food and household products, weighing around 340kg.

The second accident happened in the same shop 17 days later, when a roll cage weighing 220kg tipped over, this time the different employee escaped it falling on her but she suffered grazes and a sprained wrist.

Sainsbury’s Stores Ltd was charged under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 with failing to provide its staff with a safe way of working for unloading roll cages from delivery vehicles. It also failed to provide staff with suitable and sufficient information, instruction, training and supervision for unloading roll cages from vehicles.

Its distribution company, Wincanton Group Ltd, which filled and supplied the roll cages, was also charged under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 with failing to protect the safety of persons who were not in its employment.

Appearing before Teesside Magistrates’ Court both companies pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety laws and were each fined £10,000 and each ordered to pay £2,327 towards council costs.

Councillor Julia Rostron, Middlesbrough Council’s Executive Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, said: “These cases show the painful and life-changing injuries which can result when serious accidents occur in the workplace. It has been a long road to recovery for one member of staff."

A spokeswoman for Sainsbury’s , added: “This was a rare accident and we have expressed our deep regret that the correct procedures were not followed. We constantly monitor and train colleagues on safer working and have added in a number of checks and reminders to ensure the safe loading of roll cages into our depots.”