Abattoir worker with fear of knives awarded €20,000

An abattoir worker who developed a fear of knives after an accident has been awarded €20,000 against her employer — after it failed to find work for her which did not require the use of knives.

The Workplace Relations Commission found that the post-traumatic stress the woman developed as a result of the accident was a disability and that therefore she was discriminated against on the basis of that disability.

The Brazilian national, with limited English, had been employed by the unnamed company for two years. She alleged to the adjudication officer, Gerry Rooney, that, in June 2014, while trimming meat, a knife being used by a colleague fell on her and cut her nose and upper lip. She needed treatment including five stitches.