Basildon Magistrates' Court heard on 21 September how the MD's mother, an Indulgence Patisserie employee, was asked to sort shoes, which were stored on a floor next to an unprotected area of fragile ceiling tiles when the incident happened on 8 January 2016.
While carrying out the non-routine task, the employee fell around 2.7 m. The injuries she sustained resulted in a five-day hospital stay.
The Health and Safety Executive investigation found the company had failed to assess and manage the risks created by carrying out the non-routine task and had not implemented control measures for working near a fragile ceiling.
Indulgence Patisserie, of Clough Road, Colchester, Essex pleaded guilty breaching reg 9(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The manufacturer was fined £50,000 and must pay £5,152 costs.
