Africa-Press – South-Africa. A police officer diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after being shot on duty, and can no longer work, will receive 100% of his pension following a successful legal challenge.
The police officer approached the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Pietermaritzburg to appeal against a compensation award by the compensation commissioner of the tribunal of the Department of Labour.
The commissioner ruled that the police officer’s degree of permanent disability was assessed at 39%, which meant he would receive a monthly pension of around R7 337.
Shooting incident
The police officer, who held the rank of warrant officer, had been employed by the South African Police Service (SAPS) for 25 years when, in January 2015, a “catastrophic event befell him”.
According to the appeal judgment by the High Court on 14 April, the police officer and his colleague were about to serve a protection order when a member of the public alerted them to someone attempting to interfere with a parked vehicle just a short distance away.
The police officers drove to the place described and observed two men near a vehicle, seemingly attempting to change the number plate.
The police officer exited his vehicle and approached the two men. One of the men drew a firearm and fired two shots at the police officer. The first shot struck him in the upper abdomen, while the second shot “whistled past his ear”.
The two men managed to get away.
The police officer was largely uninjured physically, as he was wearing a bulletproof vest which absorbed the impact of the bullet that hit him.
Following the shooting, he was taken to St Augustine’s Hospital in Durban, where he was treated for shock and soft tissue injury.
“After receiving that treatment, he returned later that same day to his police station but was unable to function and was sent home. He ultimately never regained his functionality at work, and in July 2016, the SAPS determined that he was unfit for further duties, and his employment with it was terminated,” the judgment read.
Mental health condition
Following the shooting, the police officer sought further care and was referred to a specialist psychiatrist who diagnosed him with PTSD.
A month after the shooting, he was admitted to a private hospital for treatment of the disorder but did not respond well to the treatment and was admitted to hospital again in March.
“After his discharge from that institution, he returned to work on 1 April 2015. However, the symptoms that he experienced were exacerbated by his exposure to his former work environment, and he managed only one day at work.”
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In 2019, a psychiatrist compiled a report which described the police officer’s prognosis as poor and concluded that he had a “total permanent disability” due to PTSD.
In 2020, more than five years after the shooting, the psychiatrist again expressed that the police officer was permanently disabled and unable to work in the open labour market.
Claim
As a result of his condition, the police officer lodged a claim with the tribunal in terms of the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act, which is the successor to the Workmen’s Compensation Act.
In August 2019, the commissioner published the compensation award and determined the police officer’s degree of permanent disablement was assessed at 39%, which translated to a monthly pension of around R7 337.
The police officer objected to the award, which was heard by the tribunal. He contended that he should be classified as 100% disabled in terms of the act, which means he should receive 100% of his salary as a pension.
The tribunal, which accepted the police officer’s medical report, upheld the decision that the calculation of permanent disability at 39% was correct.
Appeal
However, handing down judgment, the High Court found that the police officer’s injury arose from the shooting and that the PTSD rendered him unfit to continue with his employment, and as a result, he was declared 100% disabled.
The court upheld his appeal and ordered that the police officer’s disablement be determined at 100%, which means he will get his full salary as a pension which amounts to just over R25 000.
The court also ordered that annual increases to the monthly pension accrue from January 2015 onwards and said the interest of 10.25% should be paid on the compensation from the date of the award in 2019.
The court also took time to deal with the tribunal’s judgment citing that the police officer “presented himself at the hearing as a well-groomed, able-bodied person without the necessity of any assistance whatsoever, be it physical or mental, that is, a lack of following and understanding the proceedings”.
The High Court said:
The court said that the condition of the man had nothing to do with how he looks or presents himself, but has everything to do with how he functions in his chosen career.
“It would appear that the considered findings of the medical experts that the appellant is not able to function were discounted by this observation of the tribunal.”
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