Employers Liability Flashcards
Introduction?
Employer must take reasonable care for safety but duty not unomited & employer not insurer
Bradley v CIE: employer meets DOC by acting as RM
Courts set guidelines indicating no warning of obvious risks, however if unnecessary risk created may be liable
Non Delegable duty?
Established in Wilson’s & Clyde v English 1983
Exception if employer buys from reputable supplier & employee inured from hidden defect, highlighted in Davie 1959 & further discussed in Connolly v Dundalk 1990
Some uncertainty about exact limit of duty, if reasonable checks performed they may be considered to have fulfilled duty
Heads of liability: safe place of work?
Christie v Odeon: to make accidents impossible would be to make work impossible
Obligation to protect employees outside premises not clear:
Wilson v Tyneside (plumber)
🔑 employer isn’t negligent for not inspecting private house
Mulcare v Southern Healthboard
🔑 NL for injury in dilapidated house
Barclay v An post:
🔑 NL for low letterboxes as provided training & attempted regulation compliance
Heads of liability: Safe Equipment?
Burke & John Paul (guillotine blades)
🔑 Must take RC to provide proper appliances & maintain them
Garry v John Sisk: liable for ignoring complaints about faulty cement mixer
May also be liable for not providing / maintaining safety equipment.
Statutory: Safety, Health Welfare at work act 1989
Heads of Liability: Competent Staff?
Skerrit v Scallan 1877
🔑 Duty employer owes to employees includes using due care to select proper & competent fellow workers
Failure to provide staff seen as failure to provide safe system of work through inadequate supervision
Hough v Irish base metals (prank)
🔑 SC found no negligence as no evidence of supervision standards
Heads of Liability: Safe system of work?
Leatham v Isaac Black 1945 (finger in the oven)
Manual handing?
Safety Health & Welfare & work regulations 2007
Kirby v South Eastern Health Board (nurse)
Turning procedure found negligent
Must prevent employees listing excessive weights & train properly in lifting techniques
Employee can claim negligence if not trained to lift safely even with acceptable limits
Stress related injury?
McGrath v Trintec 2005 (Uruguay, made redundant)
Laffoy considered McHugh v Minister for Defence (Lebanon) & Hatton v Sutherland
Found in favour of D:
No knowledge of vulnerability, stress issues unforeseen, no evidence of stress
Barber v Somerset 2004 (maths teacher)
E failed to act on stress related complaints leading to liability
Liability guidelines occupational stress?
Was harm foreseeable?
Depends on what E knows / should have known
E can take statements @ face value unless reason to doubt
E liable if fail to take steps to address situation
Security firms?
Ryan v Ireland
🔑 courts emphasised employers duty to take stringent precautions to protect from serious injury / death
Principle extends to security firms which must implement comprehensive measures to protect staff
Walsh v Securicor (ambushed while transporting money)
Ruled in favour, upheld by SC
