The High Court found that Focus Ireland negligently arranged a housing support worker’s workstation, contributing to the onset of her neck condition. It awarded her €15,000 in general damages for pain and suffering during the first year, and proposed €1,000 in special damages from €4,000 agreed by the parties.
The judgment, delivered by Ms Justice Murphy on 24 July 2015, concerned a claim by Catriona Gillane arising from her workstation at the charity’s premises at Grange Cohan, Waterford. Gillane alleged negligence, breach of duty, statutory duty and contract in the workstation arrangements.
Gillane returned to the Housing Support Unit in December 2007 after a two-year secondment. Her desk was placed beside a radiator and window. She said the heat led her to open the window and that she developed neck and shoulder pain. A March 2008 workplace assessment recorded concerns about heat, humidity, space and desk drawers that sometimes forced her to sit “crooked”. Following her complaint, the workstations were rearranged.
The court found no risk assessment had been carried out before the desk was placed beside the radiator and window. It held that the arrangement was negligent and breached statutory duties under the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 and related workplace regulations.
Causation was less certain. The court considered conflicting medical evidence and inconsistencies in Gillane’s accounts of when her pain began and how long she had been exposed to draughts. It also noted that myositis could occur spontaneously, that she had other inflammatory conditions, and that a recommended psychological assessment had not been presented. The court said it could not conclude that the workstation caused her ongoing condition.
It nevertheless found the defective workstation was a contributory factor in the onset of her symptoms. The judgment states that the court was satisfied Gillane had no prior history of this type of inflammation and had developed symptoms while assigned to the workstation. It therefore limited compensation to the pain and suffering attributable to the first year after onset, finding the workstation had no causative role in the condition’s continuation. The court considered €15,000 appropriate general damages for that period and proposed €1,000 special damages, given its limited finding on liability.