SNCF was ordered last week by the Paris court of appeal to compensate 119 former railway workers for anxiety damage after exposure to asbestos in their workplace, their lawyer said Tuesday (December 21st).
The court ordered the SNCF to pay 10,000 euros in damages “In compensation for the prejudice of anxiety” to each of these 119 former employees, “All retirees now”said Me Xavier Robin, confirming information from the Norman media Octopus and the SUD-Rail union. SNCF has let it be known that it will not “No comments on this subject”.
There are “119 favorable and identical decisions”, in “Similar files”, and “25 unfavorable judgments” for files that did not have “Not sufficiently substantiated with testimonies from relatives or colleagues”, explained the lawyer. These former railway workers worked “Mainly for maintenance, in workshops”, he clarified. This procedure had been launched “In 2013 before the industrial tribunal”, he added.
In 2019, the court rendered a first decision in favor of another former employee, ordering SNCF to pay him “7,000 euros” damages, reported Mr.e Robin. The court then had “Forgot to hear the other files”, he said. In the case tried in 2019, the railway group had not appealed to the cassation, said the lawyer. At the start of the procedure, there was “162 files”, but since “Some employees died and others gave up”, according to Dominique Malvaud, of SUD-Rail.
A “contractual fault”
In one of the 144 judgments handed down on December 16, the court noted that the former employee concerned “Worked on materials containing asbestos, by brushing or cutting them”. The prejudice of anxiety is ” established “ and it is a “Effective anxiety”, emphasizes the court.
Hired in 1980, this former technical agent worked “Throughout his career” in an equipment maintenance workshop in Rouen, depending on the stop. “Former colleagues” of work were “Achieved” where are “For certain deceased from diseases linked to exposure to asbestos”, adds the court. This complainant, who provided “The testimony of his relatives”, do “The subject of regular radiological monitoring in a difficult context, as soon as the link between exposure to asbestos and the development of cancer is known to him”, raises the court.
Against the SNCF, the court retained a “Contractual fault”, because the company “Does not demonstrate having made suitable protective equipment available to his employee, or even having informed him of the dangers he could incur”. However, the employer must “Ensure safety and protect physical and mental health” of its employees, recalls the court.
In a press release, the SUD-Rail federation believes that this judgment “Does not put an end to the asbestos problem” at the SNCF, where, “Even today, there are serious breaches of safety obligations”, accuses the union.