Distracted worker cuts off chunk of his hand in machine
November 13, 2008 by Fred HosierPosted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries, Latest News & Views
A judge in Ireland has thrown out a lawsuit by a man who got his hand caught in a workplace machine. The court said the worker was “the author of his own misfortune.”
Meat factory worker Hans Kelders cut off a chunk of his hand in a ham slicer while chatting with a co-worker.
Kelders took Kerry Foods to court, claiming he was put to work on dangerous machinery.
But the judge dismissed the case, saying Kelders himself was responsible.
The judge noted Kelders had been trained on the machine, which was “straightforward” and found in many delis.
Kelders said he’d let his mind wander while talking to a colleague and when he went to grab the cutter’s handle, his hand came into contact with the spinning blade.
It tore a piece of skin off his right hand.
The judge said Kerry Foods was in no way negligent in this injury case.
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Tags: court, cuts, distracted, injury
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November 18th, 2008 at 8:55 am
In the US, he would have won his case due to the liberal judges.
November 18th, 2008 at 10:56 am
I agree with Larry. In this case, a judge would probable rule that the company should have had a sign posted saying “No talking while operating machinery”. Many employees are constantly looking for a way to be compensated for their own negligence.
November 18th, 2008 at 12:51 pm
I agree with Larry too. In the US, he would have won…not only medical, but TTD and a settlement for his impairment. Even if guards were in place and he removed them or refused to use them, he would have won. It’s always the employer’s fault here, regardless of how stupid the worker is or how negligent they are. Sometimes bad things happen to good people who are trying to be safe, but I get tired of trying to “baby-proof” every single little operation only to have worker’s flagrantly disregard all precautions. And then, when they get hurt, they blame the company. Safety should be a joint effort. Until everyone takes ownership and responsibility for their own actions, safety efforts won’t really work. I wish we had some judges like this one in the US. It might make a difference.
November 19th, 2008 at 11:51 am
Amen RB! You are right on the money. Baby proofing..a constant day in/out production. The courts are far too liberal in the US. I could go on but you’ve got it covered. The US should have a common sense clause. That alone would save billions.
November 21st, 2008 at 2:15 pm
Mr. Kelders was quilty of contributory negligence and was justly disqualified from his claim. An additional defense by the employer would be to have an employee-signed acknowledgment of operational safety training on the cutter.
December 15th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
I agree entirely with this just judge. Too bad we don’t have some of his “common sense” in the US “system”! I use a little more straightforward approach with our workers. There are 4 Rules of Safety posted around the facilities. They are also the first handout to any new worker. Here goes: #1 There is no such thing as a non-preventable accident! #2 All accidents are preventable! #3 Accidents don’t just happen. They are caused by something! #4 When in doubt, refer to Rule #1! Zero accidents/Incidents is the only acceptable goal for any organization. If another number is used as a “goal” your workers will find a way to help you meet it!! I have one group that has had one 1st Aid case and Zero accidents in 46+ months, so it can happen.
I’m sure this one will engender “lots of comments”!?! Share this if you dare. It only takes an extra 2-3 seconds to listen to that voice in your head that’s SCREAMING for you to stop before you fell the pain. Yeah, and this is a Monday!
December 29th, 2008 at 5:44 pm
I agree with the comments regarding the liberal judges. Unfortunately I’m afraid we will soon see an influx of liberal judgements that will have a profound effect on our profession. As there have certainly been many rediculous claims rewarded due to liberal judgements in the past, there have also been conservative judgements that has helped to equal the playing field. The next four + years however may be challenging!
June 19th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
Figures-finally a common sense ruling-too bad it wasn’t in America!
March 18th, 2010 at 10:11 am
[...] November of 2008, an Irish court ruled against meat factory worker Hans Kelder who got his hand caught in a ham slicer at his workplace. Of course, Kelder was suing his workplace [...]