A Vocational Training teacher from a Girona institute has sued the National Social Security Institute for denying her permanent disability for her usual job, despite the medical reports included in the file and a favorable opinion from the Catalan Institute of Medical Evaluations. The lawsuit has already been admitted for processing in the social court of Girona.
The legal claim has been filed by the lawyer Ambar Zambrano, head of the Labor area at Vosseler Abogados, on behalf of C.A.M., a worker who suffers from extreme central photophobia. The request claims the recognition of a work disability with a pension, considering that she suffers from an irreversible and clearly disabling pathology.
A chronic pathology after exposure to stroboscopic lights
The origin of the clinical picture dates back more than two years, when the affected person attended a play in Girona and was exposed to strobe lights during the performance. From that episode, the ailment evolved into a chronic condition with intense neuropathic eye pain, nausea, dizziness, and functional incapacity to tolerate artificial light, screens, or light contrasts.
The medical report incorporated into the case even states that certain diagnostic functional tests could not be performed because the light from the medical devices is unbearable due to the severity of the photophobia.
Risk Prevention considers luminous stimuli harmful
In the documentation provided to the case, the Occupational Risk Prevention report concludes that artificial light, screens, and other luminous stimuli are highly harmful to her. That same analysis considers usual tasks in the teaching field such as group supervision, tutorials, meetings, or school trips to be totally contraindicated.
The opinion issued by the ICAM was favorable to the granting of permanent disability and pointed out that the pathology affects practically all the tasks inherent to his profession. Despite this, the INSS rejected the application.
The defense maintains that adaptations do not work in an educational center
"The Administration is ignoring an undeniable medical and labor reality" - Ambar Zambrano, head of the Labor area at Vosseler Abogados
The lawyer maintains that the proposed adaptation measures do not solve the problem in an ordinary teaching environment. According to the defense, the worker has a recognized 45% disability and lacks a prospect of recovery.
"The adaptations proposed by the prevention services are ineffective in a real educational environment. We are dealing with a worker who already has a recognized 45% disability and who has no prospect of recovery. Denying her the incapacity is leaving her in an unsustainable legal and vital limbo" - Ambar Zambrano, head of the Labor area at Vosseler Abogados
With the admission for processing of the lawsuit, it will be the social court of Girona that must now resolve if the requirements are met to recognize the permanent disability requested by the teacher, in a procedure that pits the favorable medical and labor reports against the administrative refusal of the INSS.