5. Employers' Liability

Question 1

What are the standard elements of negligence which apply in employers’ liability cases?

Answer 1

The usual:

1. Duty
2. Breach
3. Causation

The usual negligence defences are available.

Question 2

What is the scope of an employer’s duty to employees?

Answer 2

To take reasonable care for their safety

Question 3

What is an employer’s duty regarding the staff it hires?

Answer 3

To take reasonable care to ensure that fellow staff with whom employees work are competent

Question 4

What two situations will an employer be liable regarding fellow employees?

Answer 4

1. Employee not adequately trained to operate equipment
2. Employee regularly makes jokes/engages in horse play; employer is aware but fails to take action, and injury results

Question 5

What is an employer’s duty regarding a safe system of work?

Answer 5

Employer must devise a safe system of work, and provide adequate supervision to ensure implementation and enforcement

Question 6

What can an employer delegate and what can they not delegate?

Answer 6

Employer can delegate implementing safety systems to a contractor, but they can never delegate their duty of care and will be liable if something goes wrong

Question 7

Where an employer delegates a task, when will they breach their duty?

Answer 7

If the person to whom the task is delegated fails to take reasonable care

Question 8

What standard is expected of an employer?

Answer 8

That which would be expected of a reasonable employer

Question 9

To refresh, two things will the court will consider when determining whether the employer exercised reasonable care?

Answer 9

1. Magnitude of the risk
2. Practicability of taking precautions

Question 10

What is the impact of the employer owing a duty to each employee individually?

Answer 10

The individual circumstances of each employee are relevant to the precautions that should be taken, e.g. safety goggles may be required for employees blind in one eye because the risk of losing an eye makes them completely blind

Question 11

Where a risk is present, why is the date of knowledge within an industry relevant?

Answer 11

Because an employer cannot reasonably be expected to take precautions against a risk before it becomes known

Question 12

What does the Employer’s Liability (Defective Equipment) Act 1969 provide where an employee is injured in the course of work by equipment provided by their employer?

Answer 12

If the defect is attributable to fault on the part of some third party (e.g. supplier or manufacturer, whether identified or not), the employer will also be deemed to be negligent.

However, as a corollary, if the facts suggests there is no fault on the part of the third party, none can be attributed to the employer.

Question 13

Do the standard causation rules and usual defences apply after all of this can be established?

Answer 13

Yes