Employee wins €96,928 damages for 1996 accident
A government employee was today awarded €96,928 in damages by a court after he lost an eye during an incident while fetching an injured bird in Ghadira in 1996.
Mr Justice Joseph Azzopardi delivered this judgment following a writ of summons filed by Antoine Gatt against the Director General for Rural Affairs and the Environment.
Mr Gatt told the court that he had lost his eye sight when he had been instructed to fetch an injured bird from Ghadira without having been provided with protective clothing.
In a judgment delivered last March the First Hall of the Civil Court had ruled that the Department of Rural Affairs and the Environment bore two-thirds of the responsibility for the incident. In today's judgment the court proceeded to liquidate the damages suffered by Mr Gatt.
Mr Justice Azzopardi said that Mr Gatt had been 25 years old when the accident occurred, and that the court would therefore work out his damages over a 30-year period. Mr Gatt's salary at the time was of Lm5,200 per annum, which when calculated on a 30-year period amounted to Lm156,000. Mr Gatt had suffered a 40 per cent permanent disability and this percentage of Lm156,000 amounted to Lm41,600 equivalent to €96,928.
The government was ordered to pay this sum in damages to Mr Gatt
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V Falzon
Oct 28th 2009, 19:35
@ Nazzareno Dimech, C.Formosa
Do get your facts right at least, if you wish to be taken seriously:
1. The bird in question had nothing to do with Ghadira nature reserve. It was collected from a hotel in Mellieha Bay, after being lovingly shot down by a someone with a gun - check with the relevant authorities if you wish. So any reference to BirdLife in this matter is superfluous. Many things happen at Ghadira apart from a nature reserve, you know!
2. Mr Gatt was not "chasing birds" but collecting an injured bird as part of his day-to-day job, with the full knowledge, permission and co-operation of the authorities concerned.
Joe Fenech
Oct 28th 2009, 02:51
Tony Scott:
With you on everything.
Yes, this is a country where one has to OBEY, SHUT UP, BOW DOWN TO OTHERS, WATCH EVERY WORD HE SAYS AND EVERY MOVE HE MAKES, RESPECT POLITICIANS (who think they're living Gods)...!! Always has been, and always will be. Very sad indeed!
Tony Scott
Oct 27th 2009, 14:04
@Joe Fenech. I totally agree with you about health and safety and yes more important the workers right. And about these how about Unions give lectures about them? How many workers (employees) really know their rights? To be more precise how many of them have the guts to say No to their superiors?
Joe about democracy hehe it never existed!! Well not if someone is a Lackey!! (I am not pointing to you).
Try to pinpoint something even on e-News papers? I can take an example here. I included a word apart from "Mistakes" but guess the editor did not find it fit. Who knows is it because I mentioned the Ministry??
nazzareno dimech
Oct 27th 2009, 13:56
was ghadira nature reserve run by birdlife at that time ? if so then birdlife sould be fined too , no ? or is it only when someting that happens in mizieb then all the hunters are to blame ?
Joe Fenech
Oct 27th 2009, 10:43
Mr Scott - yes you are right (that's democratic Malta for you!), but if this task was too dangerous then he shouldn't have done it.
Calls for education in helath and safety - both to employers and employees.
Tony Scott
Oct 26th 2009, 19:21
Why are you blaming Mr. Gatt? Try not to obey your supervisors or some other higher authorities and see what happens!! How many employees do jobs that are not supposed to do in govt. depts.? Why don’t you ask those who really are responsible? When I was with the govt I never let anyone do what they wanted start with the Ministry…But guess what? I ended up without the promotion I was supposed to get (by seniority). And that’s because I did not let someone from a ministry make a mistake. Any challenges about this?
C.Formosa
Oct 26th 2009, 18:26
How does 40% of LM156000 equate to LM41600? What was a government employee doing chasing birds at Ghadira anyway?
Joe Fenech
Oct 26th 2009, 17:05
Why did Mr Gatt accept to do the task if he had no protective clothing? This seems to me a matter of self-inflicted injury due to carelessness.
E. Azzopardi
Oct 26th 2009, 16:37
Whilst one could not but be sorry for this gentleman and for an accident which should never have happened, the taxpayers will be paying for all this. Many thanks
I Abela
Oct 26th 2009, 16:28
Does this mean that at age 55 he will start seeing again ? Doesn't a permanent disabilty mean that you are disabled permanently for the rest of your natural life ? So why work it out to the retirement age ? At least if there is the need to find a target year....one should consider the life expectancy average.
lgalea
Oct 26th 2009, 15:47
Why was it only calculated over a 30 year period when he was only 25 and people his age have to retire at least when they are 65 years old? Another 10 years should have been added which would have made the compensation higher. Apart from this, why should the people made to pay through their taxes when he was instructed by his supervisor or other person responsible for him and those who should have provided him with safety clothing who should have been made to pay?
Joe Fenech
Oct 26th 2009, 15:44
Decent sum though had it been some contractor he'd been asked to pay peanuts!