LEGAL ISSUES

Legal Issues

Legal Issues

Introduction

The Australian Law regarding the injuries sustained by the employees' states that the employers must provide a safe and conducive working environment for all the workers. Since the employees have the responsibility to effectively perform the various tasks assigned by the employers, the employers have the responsibility to make sure that the employees are not exposed to clear danger. The employees have the right to work in an environment which enables them to secure their physical and mental conditions and does not leave them vulnerable to excessive health risks. If the employers fail to fulfill his right to provide the employees with the necessary safeguards and protection, the employee can effectively utilize their rights to sue the employers for the injuries caused. The injuries caused due to work related tasks which could have been easily foreseen by the employer and could have been adequately averted, has an adverse impact on the employees (Parkinson, 1994, pp. 193). Not only are the susceptive to the direct physical injuries, they also have to cope with the various psychological dilemmas. The employees may become traumatized by the incidents, leading them handicapped to continue their careers. Hence in order to safeguard the employees from their various hardships, the legal system in Australia is specifically designed so as to bind certain responsibilities on the employers.

The law in the country explicitly states that if an employee suffers from any negative influence during the normal course of his job related tasks, he is bound to sue the employer for adequate compensation. There are numerous legislative and common law tools that the employees can rely on to attain justice for their experienced hardships. When the employer is at fault or negligent, and an injury is caused to the employee, the employee can sue the employer for the breach of the duty of care. As per the relevant provisions of the duty of care on the employers, the tasks of the employees should not expose them to work in a hazardous environment. The Australian Law covers an extensive amount of injuries for which the employees can sue the employers (Balkin et Al, 1991, pp. 422). The employees who have to work in situations which are medically unfit and cause them to extract certain diseases, they can successfully sue. More relevant to the mentioned case, in the situation where the employees experience certain physical injuries, caused by the negligence of the employers, and hazardous environments, they can hold the employers liable and seek the appropriate compensation.

Discussion

The Legal Case

In this mentioned case, the firefighter was exposed to a novel situation which he had never experienced before. The officer in charge of the fire brigade reacting to the emergency called made a rash decision to place large and heavy work equipment, on a vehicle which was not designed to handle such equipment. In order to carry the large special jack a specially customized vehicle was designed, which had the on board equipment to handle the ...