The steel company Cockerill, which is part of the mutinational Arcelor-Mittal, has recently been acquitted by a Belgian Court. Cockerill was prosecuted for violating the legislation on health and safety. The violations included inadequate equipment provided to workers, inadequate number of workers at the workplace, non compliance with safety procedures and lack of surveillance. The prosecution was undertaken in the aftermath of an explosion which occurred in March 2004 during maintenance operations during which a worker was seriously injured. According to the Court, the accident was caused by negligence when the worker forgot to close a safety valve and was therefore injured. All charges against the steel producer were rejected by the Court.

Source: Belga