Mr English, a miner, was injured at work when he was crushed by haulage plant. He claimed damages from his employer, the mine owner. The employer argued that, at the time of the accident, responsibility for the safety of the mine had been delegated to his agent.
Two questions were raised (1) whether the employers were liable at common law for a defective system of working negligently provided or permitted to be carried on by a servant to whom the duty of regulating the system of working had been delegated by the employers, the employers' board of directors being unaware of the defect, and (2) if they were liable, whether the employers were relieved of their liability in view of the prohibition contained in the Coal Mines Act 1911, s2(4), against the owner of a mine taking any part in the technical management of the mine unless he is qualified to be a manager.
Lord Wright stated that the whole course of authority consistently recognises a duty which rests on the employer, and which is personal to the employer, to take reasonable care for the safety of his workmen, whether the employer be an individual, a firm, or a company, and whether or not the employer takes any share in the conduct of the operations. The obligation is threefold, "the provision of a competent staff of men, adequate material, and a proper system and effective supervision".
