Company fined £10,000 for exposing workers to lead paint
In a public liability claim, a Scottish company has been fined after it was found to have exposed employees to excessive amounts of lead paint in the workplace.
The prosecution comes after two of its workers were taken to hospital suffering from personal injury due to acute lead poisoning.
The company pleaded guilty to breaches of Section 3 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
The company had failed to identify that lead paint was present during a renovation project on the Findynate Estate, and thus had not taken suitable precautions while the old paintwork was sanded down and removed.
Over a number of months during the summer of 2008, workers inhaled and ingested large amounts of lead dust, whilst much of this ended up in their homes by sitting on their clothes. This had the potential to harm members of their family, including children.
A spokesman for the company said: “The managing director wishes to apologise to those affected and says he is horrified and mortified that they suffered injury in this way. The company acknowledge responsibility for the incident and took immediate steps to rectify it as soon as they became aware of the problem.”
The company’s fine was reduced from £15,000 to £10,000 after the court sheriff took into account their early guilty plea, current financial position and for the steps they had taken to improve their safety procedures.
It is unknwon if the workers will file a compensation claim.Updated on 24/03/2010