Fishing company Sanford and fish processing company Pelco have each been ordered to pay $10,000 in reparation to a young woman who sustained serious injuries to her hand unloading tuna in Mount Maunganui.

Sanford was fined $32,500 and ordered to pay $5000 in reparation to the victim, and Pelco was fined $22,500 and also ordered to pay reparation of $5000 in Tauranga District Court yesterday.

Sanford has been ordered to pay $5000 to a woman who got her hand stuck in a winch while unloading tuna in Mount Maunganui.

Both companies earlier pleaded guilty to the charges under the Health and Safety in Employment Act laid by Maritime New Zealand for failing to take all practical steps to ensure the safety of people working on the job.

The 22-year-old female employee was working onboard the Sanford owned Ocean Breeze unloading tuna at the Mount Maunganui wharf when she got her hand stuck in a winch as she attempted to grab the rope attached to a bucket that had become jammed in December 2011.

The woman has since recovered.

MNZ Manager Intelligence and Planning Paul Fantham said the prosecution highlighted the importance of ensuring workplace safety on ships.

'This is an excellent result for both MNZ and the victim,” he said.

'Both companies had a responsibility under the HSE Act to ensure those working to unload this vessel could do so safely.

'We welcome the guilty pleas which are an acknowledgement that processes should have been better.”