Civil liability arising from industrial accidents and occupational diseases with particular reference to asbestos exposure

Abstract

Industrial accidents and occupational diseases can have devastating effects on the workers involved and their employers. However, the consequences of occupational accidents and diseases extend beyond the workplace, affecting also the families of the afflicted workers, while society as a whole has to bear the brunt of the consequences of unsafe and unhealthy workplaces. The costs of occupational accidents and diseases support the case for placing occupational health and safety high on the political agenda. Malta’s accession to the European Union has brought about a drastic change in the national occupational health and safety legislative framework. Such strong legislative framework has expanded and strengthened the concept of civil liability in occupational health and safety. While there has been significant increase in civil liability for injuries and fatalities resulting from workplace accidents, the same cannot be said of liability involving occupational diseases. This thesis therefore provides a conceptual map of some of the elements of civil liability arising from industrial accidents and occupational diseases. Particular reference is made to cases involving asbestos exposure and how the European Court of Human Rights has applied the concept of the State’s positive obligation to protect people from dangerous activities and provide the necessary information about certain activities and risks in relation to asbestos exposure. This thesis further provides an analysis of how the Courts have interpreted the employer’s duty to ensure a safe place of work and a safe system of work. Furthermore, it addresses an important deficiency inherent in the national occupational health and safety legislative framework, namely, the legal exclusion of members of the armed forces, police force and civil protection services from the protection of occupational health and safety legislation. Such exclusion has resulted in a legislative model that fails to fulfil the objectives of the European occupational health and safety directives.