Teachers get thousands in compensation claims

From the teacher who got two black eyes after being hit in the face with a ball, to the teacher hit by a pupil with a plastic chair, hundreds of thousands of pounds' worth of compensation payments were made to school staff in Scotland this year, following injuries caused by accident, assault and poor working conditions.In total, almost £230,000 in compensation was awarded in 2018 to members of the EIS teaching union, with the largest payout of £50,000 going to a teacher who was signed off work with work-related stress and depression and who eventually resigned.Another teacher received £5,309 after being hit by a pupil with a plastic chair after intervening to protect other children, and a third teacher received £750 after being told to supervise a school activity that resulted in them being hit in the face with a ball and suffering injury to their nose and black eyes.However, the most common causes of injury were “slips, trips and falls”, with one teacher receiving £20,000 after tripping over a rug, falling heavily and having to undergo surgery.