An employee was working in the iron yard sorting incoming metal scrap at the exit point of the metal shear. The metal shear is located outside and there is a hole through the wall where the conveyor conveys metal scrap into the building where the operator workstation is located. There is a heavy rubber matting that hangs above the conveyor as a safety barrier to protect the employee from potential flying metal. A gap in the heavy rubber matting caused some metal to come underneath the plastic strip and strike the employee on the left side of the neck. The employee was hospitalized for a laceration to the neck.