Government employee awarded €3,797 over occupational incident

The First Hall of the Civil Court ordered the Public Works Department to pay William Cuschieri the sum of €3,797 in damages after the employee lost his finger when the metal grating he was unloading snapped shut.

The case goes back to 2009 when Cuschieri was employed as a plasterer with the Public Works Department, where he was however instructed to carry out different jobs. The department has since changed its name to Design and Projects Department.

On 31 July, together with Nazzareno Ciantar, he was laying pipes beneath a metal grating in the vicinity of the Upper Barrakka Gardens in Valletta. Ciantar climbed on their truck and passed the metal grating to the victim, however the grating snapped shut catching Cuschieri's finger between the edges. From the truck, the colleague saw the victim's shirt getting drenched in blood and a finger falling to the floor. The victim picked his own finger from the ground, while Ciantar fainted on the spot.

Both employees had been wearing safety gloves on their job, however Cuschieri's gloves got torn when the grating closed.  

The two were taken to hospital where the victim was informed that the doctors could not re-attach the finger, and had amputated the bone. He also needed stitches on his hand. Following the incident a medical board declared Cuschieri had suffered 6% disability in his hand.

The Occupational Health and Safety Authority was informed of the incident almost a month later, on 6 August the same year. Due to the elapsed time the OHSA decided there could be no investigation into the case and closed the file.

The Minister for Resources and Rural Affairs appointed a board to investigate the incident. The board concluded that the unloading should have been done with both men standing on the ground, and the grating was handed to Cuschieri at a height which was difficult to control. Further more the gloves used were not of the right material. The board could not establish whether the victim had received training on lifting heavy items, "but in this case it was more a question of common sense", the board said. It was concluded that the incident was the result of an error of judgement by the two workers and not due to wilful negligence.

Mr Justice Lino Farrugia Sacco held it is the responsibility of the employer to see that health and safety equipment is of the right kind. Moreover the employer must ensure that the safety equipment provided is indeed used by the employees. The court awarded Cuschieri €3,797 in damages.