Coles compo: Supermarket chain to pay Sydney deli worker for back injury
A former Sydney supermarket worker has won more than $828,000 in damages from Coles after suffering an injury while lifting a crate of chicken carcasses at a Sydney store.
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A former Sydney supermarket worker who was seriously injured when lifting chicken carcasses has won more than $828,000 in damages from Coles.
Mother-of-three Sonja Filiposka, 50, was the delicatessen manager of Coles Brighton-Le-Sands when she tried to lift a crate of chicken carcasses and suffered an excruciating lower back disc lesion.
The NSW District Court was told as deli manager, Ms Filiposka had been required to enter a confined cool room and move the chicken carcasses to prepare them for cooking in the early morning without any assistance.
She has been unable to return to work since the incident on New Year’s Eve in 2014.
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A neurological surgeon assessed her this year and considered the main barriers to her returning to work was ongoing back and leg pain, the court heard.
Ms Filiposka took her former employer to court and alleged Coles was negligent because it failed to maintain a safe system of work and failed to undertake a risk assessment of the task of transferring crates of chicken from the cool room to the oven.
Lawyers for Coles denied the supermarket was negligent and argued Ms Filiposka failed to seek assistance as and when required and failed to take precautions for her own safety in the performance of her work.
But Judge Leonard Levy sided with Ms Filiposka in his judgment and said her long-lasting injury could have been avoided.
“If she had been provided with access to an assistant who could have been called upon to assist with occasional awkward lifting of stock before opening hours, (her) back injury would most probably not have occurred,” the judge said.
“The system of work devised for (Ms Filiposka) left her foreseeably and avoidably exposed to the risk of a back injury while lifting in an awkward space with limited scope for the safe manoeuvrability of the weights being lifted. The injury could have been avoided.”
Judge Levy awarded Ms Filiposka more than $828,000 in damages after taking into account her past and future financial losses, adding: “It seems (Coles) management allowed budgetary considerations to prevail over safety considerations.”
But a Coles spokeswoman said protecting the safety of employees was the supermarket’s “number one priority”.
“Since this incident we have enhanced our workplace design, equipment and work practices to further minimise risks to our team,” she said.
“We made sure Mrs Filiposka received the treatment and support she needed in her recovery and we sincerely hope she continues to receive the care she needs. We know that safety leadership is essential.’’