The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that health-care workers who contracted breast cancer while working in a laboratory are entitled to workers compensation coverage.
“Beginning almost 15 years ago, these union members embarked on a campaign for compensation because they were sick,” said Val Avery, president of the union Health Sciences Association of BC. “Today, they are responsible for setting an important precedent for all workers.”
Health Sciences Association of BC (HSA) members Katrina Hammer and Anne MacFarlane along with Hospital Employees’ Union (HEU) worker Patricia Schmidt all worked for Fraser Health Authority at the Mission Memorial Hospital.
The women filed claims for compensations with WorkSafe BC saying that their work in the laboratories and Mission Memorial Hospital was the reason they contracted breast cancer.
An investigation by the now defunct Occupational Health and Safety Agency found that the laboratory where the health professionals were working was a cancer cluster – a geographic area where contracting cancer is more likely. Incidence of breast cancer in the laboratory was eight times higher than throughout the rest of B.C.
Mission Memorial Hospital said it is committed to the health safety of its staff and that cancer clusters are a statistically common occurrence without a definable cause.
“The report confirmed an observed cancer cluster; however, cancer clusters are a common statistical phenomenon that can occur without an identifiable cause. There have been no further clusters of breast cancers or other cancers reported among Mission Memorial Hospital employees in the 14 years since this issue was brought to our attention in 2002,” said Tasleem Juma, a spokeswoman for Fraser Health Authority.
WorkSafe BC originally denied the women’s claims that breast cancer was an occupational disease. Although the decision was eventually reconsidered and overturned, the original denial foreshadowed legal difficulties.
Originally the BC Supreme Court and BC Court of Appeal sided with Fraser Health Authority, stating that there was no evidence that connected work as the cause of the breast cancer.
But the claimants argued that weighing evidence against a scientific standard was a higher standard then required for the administration of workers compensation.
The Supreme Court agreed in its June 24 ruling.
“While the record on which that decision was based did not include confirmatory expert evidence, the Tribunal nonetheless relied upon other evidence which, viewed reasonably, was capable of supporting its finding of a causal link between the workers' breast cancers and workplace conditions,” said the Supreme Court regarding its decision.
According to the HSA president, the success of the workers compensation suit against a health institution is precedent-setting.
Fraser Health Authority said the health and safety of its employees continues to be a top priority.
“We take the safety and well-being of our staff very seriously and that includes ensuring a safe working environment for them,” said Juma. “From an operational employee safety perspective, we maintain the highest safety standards. … We appreciate that this has been very difficult for the employees involved and their families. It’s been a long legal process, and we have worked hard to address any questions and/or concerns from staff, affected employees and their families.”
