At Safety News Alert, we comb the Internet daily to find news stories of interest to safety pros. So, you can’t blame us for wanting to find out what this story was about after reading the headline:
‘Manhood’ lost in workplace accident.
It’s not what you might think.
The Brisbane Times in Australia used that headline on a story about 31-year-old Regan Fynn.
He’s suing his former employer, CSR Ltd., in connection with an injury he suffered involving a forklift.
Fynn was trying to exit the forklift but fell due to a missing foot step on the machine.
His full body weight landed on his right arm.
His lawyers say, while Fynn was once a strong, fit man, he now suffers from constant pain and weakness in his right arm and hand.
Two surgeries haven’t helped, and Fynn has become “introverted, morose and depressed.”
In fact, his claim against CSR says, “He feels as though he is unable to provide for his family and feels as if he has lost his manhood.”
OK, now we get it.
Fynn says he’s unable to teach his children to play sports, he suffers from emotional problems, and his marriage and sex life have suffered.
He seeks $503,000 from CSR, saying the company was negligent because it didn’t maintain the forklift properly.
You know how, despite the fact that both countries speak English, certain words don’t translate exactly the same between the U.S. and Australia? This story makes us wonder.