Carlsberg … perhaps the poorest safety record ever

Brewer’s Fredericia location cited for a record number of serious safety violations

Carlsberg had major safety problems at its brewery in Fredericia last year. The website fagbladet3f.dk reports that the company was cited for 12 major safety violations in 2011, setting a Danish record for the highest number of possibly dangerous conditions found in a single workplace at one time.

The national working environment authority Arbejdstilsynet demanded that the company immediately correct the violations, which included explosion risks and dangers of workers falling down a lift shaft and getting body parts caught in machinery.

Inspectors from Arbejdstilsynet said one of the most serious violations involved gas bottles stored around the facility that were not secured against possibly falling over and exploding. There was also a risk that employees could fall four metres down the shaft of a lift that had been in use for four years without the proper safety screens in place.

Ivan Nielsen, the senior shop steward at Carlsberg’s shipping terminal in Fredericia, said that company management had been warned about the dangerous conditions.

“Many of the things that the inspectors criticised we had pointed out to management earlier,” Nielsen told fagbladet3f.dk. “Nothing was ever done about them.”

Carlsberg's Fredericia shipping terminal was cited for seven violations while the brewery itself received five. Inspectors said that some of the machinery at the plant presented a great risk of bodily harm.

Company officials were quick to say that they would fix the violations.

“We are pleased that these problems have been brought to our attention," Jens Bekke, a spokesperson for Carlsberg, told The Copenhagen Post. “We place a high priority on safety and have reduced the number of accidents in 2011 to 11, down from 21 in 2010.”

Bekke said the company has fixed eleven of the twelve problems that Arbejdstilsynet pointed out and that the last one will be addressed before the summer.

This is the first time Arbejdstilsynet has visited Carlsberg’s Fredericia location since the company moved all of its major brewing operations there in 2008.

TOP STORIES

  • Bestselling author of ‘The Year of Living Danishly’ Helen Russell on why she moved back to the UK after 12 years

    Bestselling author of ‘The Year of Living Danishly’ Helen Russell on why she moved back to the UK after 12 years

    After more than a decade living in Denmark, Russell shares why she made the move, how she’s coping, what she already misses, and the exciting new projects she’s working on. “It’s been a very tough decision. I love Denmark, and it will always hold a special place in my heart,” she says.

  • Denmark launches first AI supercomputer

    Denmark launches first AI supercomputer

    The new Gefion AI supercomputer is one of the world’s fastest and will accelerate research and provide new opportunities in Danish academia and industry.

  • Navigating big love, big moves and big feelings

    Navigating big love, big moves and big feelings

    Experts believe it takes seven years to move into a new culture, according to leading Danish psychologist Jette Simon and therapist Vibeke Hartkorn. For expat couples, the challenges of starting a new life together in Denmark can put pressure on relationships, but emotions-focused therapy can help.

  • More and more Danes are working after retirement age

    More and more Danes are working after retirement age

    Politicians debate a lot these days about when you can retire. The reality shows that an increasing number of Danes like to work, even if they can withdraw from the labor market. Financial incentives help.

  • Environmental activist fears death in prison if extradited to Japan

    Environmental activist fears death in prison if extradited to Japan

    Canadian-born environmental activist Paul Watson has been in prison in Greenland for almost 100 days awaiting an extradition decision for a 14-year-old offence against a Japanese whaling vessel that he calls a “minor misdemeanor”. The 73-year-old had previously passed through Ireland, Switzerland, Monaco, France and the USA without trouble, before Greenlandic police arrested him in July.

  • Denmark too slow to ease recruitment rules for non-EU service workers, say industry associations

    Denmark too slow to ease recruitment rules for non-EU service workers, say industry associations

    When the Danish government in January presented the first of its schemes to make it easier to recruit foreign labour from outside the EU, it was hailed by the healthcare and service sectors as a timely and important policy shift. But while healthcare changes have been forthcoming, the service sector is still struggling, say the directors of the industry association Dansk Industri and one of the country’s largest private employers ISS.

Connect club

Connect Club is your gateway to a vibrant programme of events and an international community in Denmark.

Sign up here

Career

  • Come and join us at Citizens Days!

    Come and join us at Citizens Days!

    On Friday 27 and Saturday 28 of September, The Copenhagen Post will be at International Citizen Days in Øksnehallen on Vesterbro, Copenhagen. Admission is free and thousands of internationals are expected to attend

  • Diversifying the Nordics: How a Nigerian economist became a beacon for inclusivity in Scandinavia

    Diversifying the Nordics: How a Nigerian economist became a beacon for inclusivity in Scandinavia

    Chisom Udeze, the founder of Diversify – a global organization that works at the intersection of inclusion, democracy, freedom, climate sustainability, justice, and belonging – shares how struggling to find a community in Norway motivated her to build a Nordic-wide professional network. We also hear from Dr. Poornima Luthra, Associate Professor at CBS, about how to address bias in the workplace.

  • Lolland Municipality launches support package for accompanying spouses

    Lolland Municipality launches support package for accompanying spouses

    Lolland Municipality, home to Denmark’s largest infrastructure project – the Fehmarnbelt tunnel connection to Germany – has launched a new jobseeker support package for the accompanying partners of international employees in the area. The job-to-partner package offers free tailored sessions on finding a job and starting a personal business.

Want to advertise your job with CPH Post?

Contact us

Jobs