The T&T Electricity Commission (T&TEC) has been ordered to pay over $500,000 in compensation to an employee who was injured while performing his duties in 2016.
High Court Judge Ricky Rahim ordered compensation for Marlon Nelson as he upheld the negligence case against T&TEC yesterday.
The lawsuit centred around an incident at T&TEC’s Stanley P Ottley Building in Mt Hope on May 23, 2016.
Nelson, a helper in the commission’s Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition department (SCADA), was instructed by his supervisor to transfer equipment due to a rat infestation in a section of the building.
Nelson was moving a protection panel using a dolly when a wheel got stuck in a crack in the floor. The panel toppled, and Nelson used his body to brace it from hitting the floor.
Nelson suffered a spinal injury and was forced to miss several weeks of work. Although the commission paid the majority of his medical bills, including surgery, he still filed the case alleging negligence.
The commission denied any wrongdoing as it claimed that Nelson compromised his own safety by choosing to perform the task alone without seeking the assistance of his colleagues.
In deciding the case, Justice Rahim criticised Nelson’s supervisor, Darren Robinson, who was the only witness called by the commission.
He upheld Nelson’s claim that he sought assistance from Robinson, who instructed him to complete the task without help. “It is the finding of the court that Robinson was not telling the truth and was an abysmal supervisor on that day, in that he failed to supervise the job and gave instructions to Marlon which he would have reasonably foreseen could lead to injury,” Justice Rahim said.
Despite finding that the company was negligent and breached provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) dealing with providing a safe workspace, Justice Rahim also found that Nelson was partially to blame for his injury.
Stating that Nelson was aware that the panel was heavy and moving it was a dangerous task, Justice Rahim said: “This is simply nothing short of astounding and demonstrated a clear disregard for his own safety as opposed to the safety, as it were, of the inanimate panel.”
“In the court’s view, he bears responsibility for his own actions which have materially contributed to his injury,” Justice Rahim added, as he agreed to reduce Nelson’s compensation by 30 per cent based on his contributory negligence.
In assessing the appropriate compensation for Nelson less the discount, Justice Rahim decided on $140,000 in general damages for the pain and suffering he endured.
The compensation was largely based on the extent of his injury, which still persists despite his surgery, and its effect on his ability to play the guitar semi-professionally in a band, which played backup instrumentals for local and foreign performers. “The injury has prevented him from playing with the level of skill as before. Moreover, if he persists in playing in spite of the pain he develops a migraine,” Justice Rahim said.
Justice Rahim also ordered $371,271.25 in special damages.
The special damages were based on his loss of earnings from T&TEC when he missed work due to the injury and his future loss of earnings from playing periodically in the band in his free time. It also covers the cost of his continuing physiotherapy for the injury.
The commission was also ordered to pay his legal costs for the lawsuit.
Nelson was represented by Clay Hackett, and Alatashe Girvan. The commission was represented by Anderson Modeste.