In January 2006, 52-year-old worker Teresa Bialochleb injured her back whilst moving boxes at the former Trebor Bassett Ltd factory in Nether Poppleton.

Claiming the boxes were too heavy for a woman to lift, and that persistent strain to her back had left her with lasting damage, she took her case to York County Court, seeking £100,000 in compensation.

Mrs Bialochleb says she was working on a packing line at the factory, filling boxes with sweets then lifting the 15kg boxes onto a pallet. After doing this for four hours, she felt something go in her back. She had to see a doctor, and hasn’t been able to work since. She is also unable to do housework now, and her family relies on state benefits.

Her claim was dismissed by the county court judge after experts said that sweets were pouring from the machine at a rate of 9kg/minute, and that she wouldn’t have been injured lifting boxes of that weight.

After the hearing, Mr Bialochleb pointed out, however, that the speed at which the sweets were arriving was irrelevant as his wife had to lift the boxes when they were 75% full (and weighing more than 15kg).

Mrs Bialochleb has now taken case to the Court of Appeal in London where Lord Justice Ward will weigh up the evidence. The judge has decided to adjourn the case so that the claimant’s former employers can attend.

He said: “The flaw in the judgment may be that the judge has erroneously assumed that every box was filled every minute with 9.63 kilos, when that doesn’t appear to be the reality of the stress and strain and urgency of the actual operation conducted on the floor,” adding “if it is correct that this lady had no previous history of back problem until this eventful day and if she has continued to suffer, it seems to me something must have happened that day to cause her continuing difficulties.” He concluded, therefore, that “the defendants may have some case to answer.”

As we reported in our blog earlier this month, “171 workers suffered fatal injuries and a further 115,379 non-fatal injuries were reported to RIDDOR” in 2010/11. There were also around half a million new cases of people suffering from illnesses either caused or made worse by their jobs.

Families have been turned upside down and people’s lives have been changed forever, but long-term trends indicate that, overall, health and safety in the workplace is improving.

That’s not because we’ve stopped using dangerous machinery or working with hazardous materials. It’s not because people somehow have more common sense now than they once did.

It’s largely because employers have been forced to give more attention to the health and safety of their workers by the law, and because those that fail to do so face the prospect of prosecution by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the payment of fines and workplace accident compensation.

So workers’ rights campaigners are right to be dismayed by news that the Government is planning to “radically reduce the number of health and safety rules” that businesses have to adhere to.

Prof Ragnar Löfstedt of King’s College London will lead a review of workplace safety laws which will look at how more emphasis can be put on the personal responsibility of individual employees.

At present, workplace accidents and compensation payments cost British businesses around £8 billion a year, and business groups are lobbying the Government to look at ways of reducing this financial burden.

It’s no secret that many people think health and safety regulations have gone too far, with this notion being heavily backed by the tabloid press:

The Daily Mail refers to “Britain’s ‘nannying’ health and safety culture which has held business back for decades.”

The Sun is full of contempt for “BONKERS health and safety laws which tie up small firms in red tape.”

And The Daily Star is no less enthusiastic about the prospect of “Britain’s barmy health and safety laws” being ditched.

Our health and safety record is one of the best in the world, and that’s thanks to the robust regulations we have in place.

But the very real risk here is that the progress that has been made with workplace health and safety in Britain will be reversed, with the profits of businesses taking precedence over the rights of their employees.

In 2006, a construction worker fell 80 feet from scaffolding whilst working at Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle.

The 38-year-old man, who can’t be named for legal reasons, was left permanently disabled by the accident. He suffered severe head injuries, causing brain damage, as well as shattering both legs, and still faces the possibility of having one or both of his legs amputated.

He fell from the 6^th storey due to the fact that the scaffolding he was working on was not properly secured. It was only because he was working so near the hospital’s A&E department that he didn’t lose his life.

The worker and his family took legal action against his employer, Laing O’Rourke Construction Ltd. The case went to the High Court in London, where a settlement was eventually agreed.

The company is paying a lump sum of £2 million in compensation, in addition to payments of £65,000 a year when he reaches 45, rising to £105,000 a year when he turns 55 and £150,000 a year when he reaches retirement age. The figures are linked to the cost of his considerable long-term care requirements.

Commenting on the settlement, Mr Justice Royce said: “It is quite clear that you have faced the consequences of this terrible accident with immense courage, fortitude and determination. This is a very sensible settlement. Good luck to you.”

The worker’s barrister, Jonathan Watt-Pringle, said his client “made a brave fist of the hand fate dealt him” adding that he is optimistic about the future, thanks to the support of his mother and the rest of his family.

It is estimated that 65 % of the construction industry (2.3 million workers) use scaffolding regularly to access hard-to-reach areas. Roughly 50 people die each year due to collapsing scaffolds, whilst 4,500 suffer injuries caused by defective scaffolding.

We specialise in compensation claims for accidents at work. If you have been injured as a result of your employer failing to fulfil their health and safety responsibilities, contact us today to discuss your case with an expert.

Desmond Groom, a 44-year-old caretaker from Staffordshire, has been awarded £3,000 in compensation after noxious fumes caused him to fall and fracture his ribs.

Mr Groom, who was working for Burrowes Street Tenant Management Organisation Ltd, used a fungicidal wash to clean one of the firm’s properties in Walsall after receiving a note instructing him to do so.

However, the company failed to provide him with any information on safe use of the product, which is manufactured by a firm called Beeline. When he began using the solution, he was overwhelmed by the noxious fumes. This caused him to pass out and fall against a sink as he was coming down his step ladders, breaking his ribs in the process.

He had been working for the company for 3 years when the incident happened, and was forced to take 3 months off work as a result of the accident. In total, it took 6 months for him to recover fully.

Mr Groom’s legal team argued that his employer should have carried out a risk assessment and supplied him with the appropriate safety equipment, and although the firm refused to admit formal liability, they awarded him £3,000 damages for his injury at work claim in an out of court settlement.

Mr Groom’s employer released a statement underlining the fact that they treat worker safety as a matter of priority, adding that all injuries in the workplace are taken “extremely seriously”.

Mr Groom, of Norton Canes, Cannock, now works as a gardener.