RMT WINS INJURY APPEAL

A Court of Appeal ruling that London Underground failed to provide proper training to a driver who developed tenosynovitis in her right wrist has been welcomed by the union. RMT and its lawyers, Thompsons, who acted for Latona Allison, say that the decision sent out the important message that it is the duty of employers to carry out risk assessments and take appropriate action, and not to wait until a health and safety concern is brought to their attention. Ms Allison said that she was not given adequate training in the use of the safety brake, known as the Dead Man's Handle, when a new design was introduced. She can no longer work as a train driver as a result of her condition. APPEAL Her original claim for compensation was rejected by the County Court, but the Court of Appeal has now ordered that LUL pays damages. Three judges agreed that the training provided had been inadequate “in the light of what the employer ought to have known about the risks arising from the activities of the business”. They agreed that it was not enough to provide the training after the risks were known. The court said that Judges have been giving insufficient attention to risk assessments in the years since the duty was introduced. “Risk assessments are meant to be an exercise by which the employer examines and evaluates all the risks entailed in his operations and takes steps to remove or minimise those risks,” the judgement said. They also agreed that there should be a “blueprint for action”. Henrietta Phillips, Ms Allison's solicitor at Thompsons, said that risk assessments were intended to be a pro-active duty on employers when the requirement to carry them out became law in 1992. “Yet increasingly Judges, when asked to decide if an employer has been in breach of that duty, drift back to the common law where a risk had to be brought to an employers' attention before an assessment is carried out,” she said. RMT general secretary Bob Crow said that the decision was very good news, for all workers. “It makes it quite clear that employers have the duty to assess risk and take the necessary steps to protect employees' health and safety,” he said. RMT WINS INJURY APPEAL RMT welcomes Court of Appeal ruling on Tube driver’s wrist injury RMT helpline 0800 3763706 :: march 2008 :: RMTnews 11 LEGAL STATS SUMMARY OF FATAL AND NON-FATAL ACCIDENTS AND ASSAULTS TO MEMBERS FOR THE PERIOD OCTOBER 1 TO DECEMBER 31 2007 Fatal Accidents Non-Fatal Accidents Assaults Rail Operating Grades 0 47 3 Rail Engineering Grades 0 16 0 Workshops 0 1 0 Road Transport 0 1 0 Buses 0 5 0 L.U.L. and Metros 0 16 2 Shipping 0 7 0 RMT Head Office staff 0 1 0 CLAIMS FOR DAMAGES AT COMMON LAW FOR THE PERIOD 1st OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 31 2007 Number of claims settled 108 [72] Total amount recovered £270,357.75 [573,518.30] [including CICA Claims] Note: These figures do not include cases dealt with by Pattinson & Brewer. The figures in brackets are those for the previous quarter. LEGAL ASSISTANCE GRANTED IN RESPECT OF CHARGES BROUGHT BY THE POLICE FOR THE PERIOD OCTOBER 1 TO DECEMBER 31 2007 Road Traffic Act 7 [7] Other police charges 3 [4]