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A Cyprus quarry worker who suffered a shattered shoulder and underwent three major surgeries after a colleague accidentally turned on a conveyor belt has won a total of €95,000 in damages following a successful Supreme Court appeal.
The decision completely overturns a previous ruling that blamed the mechanic for his own injuries. The highest court in Cyprus found the employer solely responsible for the 2010 industrial accident.
Severely injured in rock hopper
The incident happened in December 2010 while the victim was working as a mechanic and welder. While he was carrying out orders inside a rock collection hopper, another employee mistakenly activated the heavy machinery. The sudden movement threw the worker and a colleague directly into the path of the stone collection equipment.
The impact caused a dislocated right shoulder and a severe fracture to the greater tuberosity of the humerus, the upper part of the arm bone.
Medical complications required the worker to undergo three separate surgical procedures. The court heard that he continues to endure severe pain and permanent physical limitations more than fifteen years after the initial fall.
Total liability on employer
A lower court previously deemed €50,000 to be fair compensation. That court had also penalised the injured worker, cutting his payout by 30% after ruling that he shared blame for the incident. Additionally, the initial court rejected any compensation for his career prospects and reduced the legal interest rate on his payout.
The Supreme Court rejected those findings completely. The appellate judges ruled that the worker did absolutely nothing to violate his own safety protocols. Because he was simply following orders when his colleague started the machinery, the court placed 100% of the liability on the quarrying company.
Increased payout and interest
The high court judges stated that the original €50,000 sum was clearly inadequate given the scale of the injury, the repeat surgeries, the permanent physical damage, and inflation. They increased the general damages to €80,000.
The court also recognized that the injury left the man at a permanent disadvantage in the job market, especially since the company dismissed him at the age of 56. To compensate for this, the judges awarded him an extra €15,000 for his lost earning capacity.
The quarry firm must pay full legal interest on the €80,000 backdated to the exact day of the accident in December 2010. The interest on the remaining €15,000 will accumulate from the 2017 lower court decision date until the full amount is settled.
