Council pays out GBP115,000 to injured employees

A council has paid out GBP115,000 to four district council employees in the past three years following accidents at work.
 
One employee of Epping Forest District Council's corporate support services directorate won GBP7,024 after trapping a finger in faulty machinery, while another received GBP11,350 after slipping on a bottle and cutting their face.
 
Ironically, the corporate support services directorate deals with health and safety and legal issues.
 
Meanwhile another employee in the council's former leisure services department won GBP10,000 after a metal lintel fell on their head.
 
The figures were revealed when a local newspaper used the Freedom of Information Act to obtain details of the payouts, which also included GBP86,720 compensation to a former employee in the housing works unit who was exposed to asbestos.
 
Council leader Di Collins is reported as saying that the monetary figure is unusually high as over 75% of it relates to one asbestos-related claim from someone who worked for the council 30 years ago.
 
She went on to say that the individual's health has suffered significantly and solicitors acting on his behalf issued proceedings against the council and some of his other former employers.
 
With asbestos-related injuries it is impossible to prove their direct cause and, following legal advice, the council and the other former employers reached a negotiated settlement.
 
She added that any injuries at work are regrettable, but it is important to set a proper context. The council has a workforce of 650 so an average of one incident a year does not represent a bad record.