Foundry Worker Receives £75,000 for Painful Skin Condition

Every employer must provide employees with suitable personal protective equipment to guard against exposure to health and safety hazards while they are at work. To this end, employers should carry out risk assessments to identify any foreseeable risks faced by employees.

A foundry worker recently received £75,000 in an out-of-court settlement after he developed a painful skin condition caused by irritants used in the manufacturing process.

Gary Rigby, 50, was employed as a manual worker by St Gobain PAM UK, which supplies ductile iron and cast iron products. He had worked for the company for 34 years. When he started work in the core shop, he was exposed to a type of resin-coated sand called Hexamine. In less than three weeks his hands were covered in an itchy and painful rash. This soon spread to his arms, feet, chest and neck. He was provided with gloves and boots, but these did not provide adequate personal protection.

Mr Rigby consulted his doctor, who diagnosed work-related dermatitis, and he was off work for two weeks. On returning to work, he was transferred to a different department until his condition improved.

Six weeks later, he went back to work in the foundry’s core shop and again suffered a serious allergic reaction. This necessitated a further two weeks off work. He was eventually moved to a lower-paid job.

A claim was brought against Mr Rigby’s employer on the ground that it had not provided him with the correct protective equipment. The company had failed to carry out a proper risk assessment, which would have identified the need to provide suitable equipment. Mr Rigby won £75,000 to compensate him for his pain and suffering and for loss of earnings because he can now only do less skilled work.