25 May 2024 , 20:58
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A Heathrow baggage handler who devoted her life to the airport has been left permanently disabled after being dragged along a conveyor belt when her scarf got caught in machinery.
Jasbir Sahota, 52, suffered serious injuries after the accident on Valentine's Day this year. The worker was unloading luggage from a Loganair flight from Dundee to London when the incident happened. Mrs Sahota, who has worked at Heathrow Airport for 30 years, suffered injuries that left her disabled, as well as brain damage.
Her heartbroken family are now demanding her employed Menzies, a global aviation services company, pay for the special care Mrs Sahota needs. However, her loved ones have accused the company of "treating her like a number rather than a valued employee" as they claim they have shown an indifferent attitude.
The worker's family is now taking legal action against her employer (Getty Images)The Heathrow worker's two children, Nina Haer and Harman Sahota, and her brother-in-law Satti Heir, said they have had no alternative but to take legal action against Menzies. Lawyers have launched a case in a bid to force the company to pay the cost of transferring Mrs Sahota from Hillingdon Hospital to the private Wellington Hospital, a provider of specialist complex care the NHS simply cannot manage.
The cost is estimated to be around £300,000. Satti told The Telegraph: "Jaz deserves the best care and the best treatment and this just isn’t available on the NHS. To stand a fighting chance of making any improvement she needs to be moved to the Wellington. Every day she stays at Hillingdon - and they are doing their best - it is a day we're losing her and that's awful."
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The family claimed Menzies initially vowed to do everything they could to help the woman, who has worked at Heathrow since she was 22, but according to 31-year-old Nina, they have "not kept their word" and have instead become "completely obstructive". Satti added: "They should be prioritising Jaz and getting her the care she needs. She was an employee of long-standing, a good, devoted worker and they owe it to her."
Following Mrs Sahota's incident, 24-year-old Harman has been forced to take time off work as a signal engineer with Network Rail for stress-related reasons. Meanwhile, Nina has had to take a less demanding position for a recruitment company near the family home in Hayes, west London.
Menzies told The Mirror that it could not share details on the incident as it is the subject of an "active investigation". A Menzies spokesperson said in a statement: "An active investigation is underway following a serious incident involving a Menzies employee at Heathrow Airport earlier this year. As this is ongoing, we cannot provide any further detail at this time. Our thoughts are with our colleague and their family."
Heathrow Airport did not comment.