Council issues £2.6 million to people injured at work

Workers at Birmingham City Council have been successful in claiming £2.6 million over the last five years as a result of suffering personal injuries.

During this period, a series of requests for payouts were made against the local authority - which is headquartered in the city's Victoria Square.

For example, one staff member secured thousands of pounds after developing post-traumatic stress following an undisclosed incident.

In addition, there were claims made for exposure to asbestos, which led to at least two individuals contracting mesothelioma.

Responding to the figures, which were obtained through the Freedom of Information Act, councillor Ian Ward said he was surprised.

He added: "I'm sure more could be done to reduce accidents at work to get those figures down."

According to the Health and Safety Executive, there were a total of 246,000 reportable worker injuries over the course of 2008-09, which was a fall from the 299,000 recorded the previous year.