Casino pays out to ex-employee

A Dragonara Casino employee has been awarded more than €42,000 in damages after a court ruled that she had suffered a permanent disability at work.

Mr Justice Silvio Meli delivered the judgement following an action filed by Lucianne Cassar.

Ms Cassar was employed as a slot attendant by the casino’s former operators and had to empty coins from the slot machines once a week.

The coins were stored in a tub, known as a hopper, inside the machine and to remove the hopper the employees had to kneel down and give the machine a slight jolt.

The current operators use a different system that replaces the coins with vouchers.

Ms Cassar had been doing the job for some time but in July 2001, she injured her right hand and her back. She was taken to hospital where her hand was put in plaster.

The court heard that the hopper, when full of coins, weighed about 20 kilos.

Mr Justice Meli found that Ms Cassar had suffered a permanent disability and could no longer lift heavy items as a result of the accident.

She could not stand for long periods of time, nor could she hold her child, who had been delivered by Caesarean section because of her back pain.

The court found the Dragonara Casino was responsible for Ms Cassar’s injury because it had not offered employees suitable practices to follow when emptying the slot machines.

The court awarded Ms Cassar €42,622 in damages, including €8,000 in compensation for her suffering.