Qantas in cancer payout
A report in The Daily Telegraphs says that Qantas could potentially be exposed to tens of millions of dollars in compensation after a dying aircraft maintenance worker was awarded almost $1 million for lung cancer he contracted after working for the airline
In an Australian first, sheet metal worker Philip Johnson won the payout in an out-of-court settlement after taking the case to the NSW Dust Diseases tribunal.
Mr Johnson, who worked at the airline’s Sydney Airport base between 1971 and 1991, was diagnosed with lung cancer two years ago and it was deemed to have been caused by the inhalation of hexavalent chromium.
Doctors have given the 51-year-old father-of-three six months to live.
Nearly all his work at Qantas involved using an air-powered grinder to cut and grind metal surfaces and components, painted with primers and paints and that were sealed with sealants which contained hexavalent chromates.
A legal briefing note obtained by The Daily Telegraph states: “He mainly worked in confined spaces and was exposed to harmful dusts not only generated by him, but by his co-workers (approximately 100 workers per shift).
He was also exposed to the spraying of aircraft with paint which also contained respirable hexavalent chromium compounds.”
Mr Johnson told The Daily Telegraph the airline gave him virtually no protection from the lethal dust.
“If you’re in a very confined area you might have a piece of rag wrapped around your face and a pair of goggles,” he said.
With some 300 workers employed in Mr Johnson’s section at any one time over a 20 year period, the case has the potential to cost Qantas millions of dollars and possibly many times that.
In a case which has overtones of the James Hardie asbestos scandal, the lung cancer can emerge years or decades after exposure to the deadly dust.
While no legal precedent has been set because the case was settled out of court, it remains the first settlement in the country where an employee has been compensated for cancer caused by inhaling chromates.
Mr Johnson’s law firm Turner Freeman has also acquired a body of evidence about conditions in the hangar at Mascot. Lawyer Rita Palazzolo said the settlement paved the way for other past employees who contract the disease.
A Qantas spokesman said the airline had never admitted liability for causing the cancer.
“While we are not able to discuss the detail of this case, it was settled by mutual agreement and without admission of liability,” he said.
He also said current occupational health and safety conditions met or exceeded legal requirements.
Report by The Mole
John Alwyn-Jones
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