The High Court found Allergan Pharmaceuticals Ireland negligent in leaving janitors to deal with stubborn blue marks on a factory floor and in allowing Richard Steer to work excessive overtime. It held that those failures probably accelerated or exacerbated pre-existing spinal changes, but that Mr Steer’s own conduct also contributed to his chronic pain.
In a judgment delivered on 13 October 2017, Ms Justice Murphy rejected much of Mr Steer’s account of his work. The court found that janitorial duties were not “heavy duty” cleaning and that using the floor machines did not generally require heavy or awkward movement. It also rejected his claim that their use was constant or repetitive over a prolonged period.
The court did find that, from 1998 to 2005, painted pallets regularly left blue marks in the unit dose packaging area. The supplied scrubber could not fully remove them. Management knew of the problem but did not resolve it, leaving janitors to devise a method. Mr Steer and a colleague used the scrubber by lifting one side and pressing the other down over the marks. The court found the machine was not designed for this and that the method put undue pressure on the operator’s spine. It said the problem could have been addressed with protective material under the pallets or a more powerful machine.
The second breach concerned Mr Steer’s hours. Evidence included that he sometimes worked up to 36 hours’ overtime in a week, regularly took an additional Saturday shift, and once worked 19 consecutive 12-hour shifts. The court found that his workload was excessive and that Allergan should have ensured adequate rest periods.
On causation, the judge found that the two failures probably contributed to pre-existing degenerative changes becoming symptomatic. She did not find that Allergan caused the underlying spinal degeneration, and said the worker’s other health problems, including lung and cardiac conditions, were unrelated to his work. The court also found that Mr Steer knew his back was becoming troublesome but did not tell his employer or reduce his overtime. It held that this contributed to the worsening and chronic nature of his symptoms.
The court awarded €35,000 for past pain and suffering, €10,000 for future pain and suffering, and €19,000 in agreed special damages, subject to liability. It expressly excluded damages for chronic disability arising from ongoing spinal degeneration, which it found was not attributable to Allergan’s negligence. The judgment does not state a percentage reduction for contributory negligence.