Employee’s acceptance of risk The doctrine of common employment was justified on the basis that the employee had, when entering the contract of employment, accepted the risk of injury by other workers employed by the employer. A further development of the same argument was that, by accepting the work and continuing in the employment in the knowledge that there were risks involved, the employee accepted the risks and could not claim damages from the employer if injury were suffered. The employee could be deemed to have accepted risks that a careful employer might have removed. 3 Employer’s duty was to take care The employer’s duty was not a strict one: it was only to exercise reasonable care. However, because of the emphasis placed upon the employee’s acceptance of risk there were relatively few occasions on which a court had to decide whether the employer had shown care. Moreover, when technology was primitive and scientific knowledge was limited conditions which would be totally unacceptable today might be regarded as quite normal. (c) Signs of change : As the nineteenth century entered its final decade there were signs of change: reviewed by the House of Lords; the Court of Appeal;

doi:10.4324/9781843140504-50

Chapter

Employee’s acceptance of risk The doctrine of common employment was justified on the basis that the employee had, when entering the contract of employment, accepted the risk of injury by other workers employed by the employer. A further development of the same argument was that, by accepting the work and continuing in the employment in the knowledge that there were risks involved, the employee accepted the risks and could not claim damages from the employer if injury were suffered. The employee could be deemed to have accepted risks that a careful employer might have removed. 3 Employer’s duty was to take care The employer’s duty was not a strict one: it was only to exercise reasonable care. However, because of the emphasis placed upon the employee’s acceptance of risk there were relatively few occasions on which a court had to decide whether the employer had shown care. Moreover, when technology was primitive and scientific knowledge was limited conditions which would be totally unacceptable today might be regarded as quite normal. (c) Signs of change

Chapter

Employee’s acceptance of risk The doctrine of common employment was justified on the basis that the employee had, when entering the contract of employment, accepted the risk of injury by other workers employed by the employer. A further development of the same argument was that, by accepting the work and continuing in the employment in the knowledge that there were risks involved, the employee accepted the risks and could not claim damages from the employer if injury were suffered. The employee could be deemed to have accepted risks that a careful employer might have removed. 3 Employer’s duty was to take care The employer’s duty was not a strict one: it was only to exercise reasonable care. However, because of the emphasis placed upon the employee’s acceptance of risk there were relatively few occasions on which a court had to decide whether the employer had shown care. Moreover, when technology was primitive and scientific knowledge was limited conditions which would be totally unacceptable today might be regarded as quite normal. (c) Signs of change

ABSTRACT

The doctrine of common employment was justified on the basis that the employee had, when entering the contract of employment, accepted the risk of injury by other workers employed by the employer. A further development of the same argument was that, by accepting the work and continuing in the employment in the knowledge that there were risks involved, the employee accepted the risks and could not claim damages from the employer if injury were suffered. The employee could be deemed to have accepted risks that a careful employer might have removed.