Workers win rights to safety footwear

Company deemed at fault for failing to provide proper footwear which could have prevented a slip.

A home care services provider faces having to provide protective footwear to staff who work outdoors after a landmark court ruling found in favour of a care worker who slipped on an icy path outside a patient’s home. The employee is reported to have suffered serious wrist damage when she lost her footing during the severe Scottish winter of 2010 while on her way to a sick client.

The Edinburgh Court of Session decided that the company was at fault for failing to provide proper footwear, such as spiked snow shoes, which could have prevented the woman’s fall. The employers are also said to have not given proper guidance on the footwear she should wear in the icy conditions.

The judge rejected arguments that the employee could have decided not to go out because of the hazardous conditions, because she was on ‘an errand of mercy’. He expressed some sympathy for the company, noting that it has many employees and a range of activities, and will not have an unlimited budget. The care worker is now in line for substantial compensation.

Publishing Data

This article was originally published on page 6 of the October 2013 issue of SATRA Bulletin.

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