Risham Nominees Pty Ltd, operators of garlic bread manufacturer Centenary Bakehouse, was on Thursday sentenced in the Victorian Supreme Court over the death of Jassim Al Shadori.
Mr Al Shadori was removing panels from the roof of the Reservoir warehouse in Melbourne's north when he fell 4.5 metres on August 1, 2021.
He suffered significant head injuries and died at the scene.
Risham Nominees pleaded guilty to workplace manslaughter and the company is only the second to be sentenced since the charge was introduced in Victoria in 2020.
Justice Jacinta Forbes on Thursday found the risk Mr Al Shadori would fall was "readily foreseeable" and company director Samir Hamod should have been aware of it.
But Mr Al Shadori and the other workers were not given any safety instructions and instead were only told to do the job safely, the judge noted.
There was also a harness available on site that was not used, she said.
Mr Al Shadori was an Iraqi migrant who had moved to Australia with his family for a better life, Justice Forbes noted.
He was a hardworking man who was generous to others and the sentence was not a reflection on the value of his life, the judge said.
Justice Forbes accepted Risham Nominees had shown remorse for Mr Al Shadori's death and had taken steps to address occupational health and safety concerns.
That included paying a contractor $34,000 to safely remove the panels and hiring safety consultants to conduct risk assessment reviews.
A WorkSafe inspection in January 2025 also found the company had performed the relevant risk assessments and implemented training to ensure workers were safe.
Justice Forbes accepted the company was of previous good character, noting it had no prior convictions and had made many contributions to charity over the years.
She convicted and fined Risham Nominees $3.4 million.
The first company to be convicted over workplace manslaughter was LJ Holding Management Pty Ltd, which was re-sentenced on appeal to a $3.1 million fine in April 2025.
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