Factories can be fairly dangerous places to work – whether it is moving parts on machines, forklift trucks zipping from place to place or just things left laying around that you could fall over, the factory environment is not always a safe one.
There are many potential injuries in a factory and if you work in one your employers has a responsibility to keep you safe while you are there. Employers should provide their employees with the correct safety equipment and training that will allow them to work in as safe an environment as possible.
One of the measures that employers should use to keep you safe is “PPE” or Personal Protective Equipment. These are items provided to you by your employer to work with or use which should allow you to keep as safe as possible while in the workplace.
Examples of PPE would include hard hats, gloves and high visibility clothing. However, simply providing a hard hat is not enough; the PPE should be relevant to your job and protect you from the dangers you face. For instance, in a factory that was extremely loud it would be more relevant to have ear protection than goggles. It is your employers’ responsibility to provide PPE and replace it when it wears out – as well as regularly inspect and maintain it to ensure it is always safe and appropriate.
Another thing your employers should do is make sure that any machinery that you have to use is set up correctly and free from defects. The same applies for tools that they provide you with. If this isn’t the case or your employer has allowed another member of staff to be careless or negligent in setting up your equipment then this too could lead to a claim. In certain circumstances your employer may ask you to inspect your equipment but if the fault was not something that you could have reasonably found or if you have not been shown by your employer what to look for when checking equipment for faults, this should not absolve them of blame for your injury.
In any event your employers should ensure that you and your colleagues are properly trained to do the jobs and tasks that they are asking you to do. Therefore if you become injured doing a job that you have been given by your employer but were never properly trained by them to do it then they may be liable for your injuries. The same again would also apply if you were injured as a result of an accident that occurred because a colleague of yours was not trained properly. It is your employers responsibility to provide adequate training to all employees and if you are injured because they failed to do so then they may be at fault.
So if any of the above relates to you then you may be entitled to make a claim for compensation. If this is the case then contact The Injury Lawyers straight away for expert personal injury law advice.
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