Worker Awarded Compensation for Health Problems Caused by Vibrating Tools
A toolmaker for the Ford Motor Company Ltd. in Halewood has been awarded £8,500 as compensation for the serious handicap caused in his hands due to working with vibrating equipments.
The employee, Anthony Barry, who is around sixty years old and lives in St Helens, developed this debilitating condition known as Vibration White Finger or Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) because of the constant use of vibrating tools at work.
Many people who have to use vibrating tools for long periods of time suffer from this work related disease. The problems caused by it are varied but the usual symptoms are discolouration of the skin, numbness in the tips of fingers and unusual pain and aches in the finger, hands and arms.
Barry had been employed with Ford for more than thirty years and had to operate numerous vibrating equipments each day. He was never cautioned about the risk of suffering from HAVS. A few years back, he realised that his fingers were turning white as the weather turned cold. His former colleagues informed him that he had been afflicted with HAVS. He consulted a doctor who diagnosed his problem and came to the same conclusion. Barry had already left his work at Ford about a decade back and is currently employed in National Museums Liverpool as a visitor assistant.
Lisa Gormley of Thompsons Solicitors stated that employers should conduct a proper risk assessment of the health and safety issues faced by workers due to long- term use of vibrating tools, as stated by the Control of Vibration at Work Regulations, 2005. Had his employers been more alert, Barry could have been saved from developing this industrial disease, which he would have to suffer now for his entire life. An IOSH Managing Safely course will provide you with the knowledge to manage safely and effectively in compliance with both workplace policy and best practice in health and safety, and help you to identify and implement appropriate workplace precautions for specific risks or seek advice on workplace precautions – click on NEBOSH college for details of training for this highly regarded course.
