Almost a year after she was awarded a default judgement in a personal injury lawsuit she brought against oil services company, Centipede Offshore (Guyana), Tanesha Fredericks has accepted a settlement of $7, 497, 187. The agreement between her and the company was made on May 6.
Fredericks had been employed as a utility cleaner with the Trinidad and Tobago-headquartered company which has an office locally at 35 Delhi Street, Prashad Nagar, Georgetown.
In the action, she had sought damages in excess of $1,000,000 for chemical burns she sustained on her fingers between October 28 and 29, 2020. She had also claimed special damages for medical expenses, loss of income, and loss of earning capacity and costs. The woman complained therein that during her tenure she was forced to perform duties, which included the handling of toxic chemicals and cleaning agents with surgical gloves instead of industrial-strength gloves.
After complaining several times for better gloves, Fredericks said that she was transferred to various departments on the sea vessel, and was subsequently fired. She said that when she came onshore, her fingers began feeling numb, and as such, she sought medical attention at a city hospital, where doctors informed her that she would never again be able to feel in her 10 fingers.
The woman had instituted the claim in early 2021. With Centipede Offshore failing to file a defence by the prescribed time, High Court Judge Fidela Corbin-Lincoln granted the default judgement on July 8, 2021.
