Tuesday, 17 February 2026

 Aiv PUGLIELLI (North-Eastern Metropolitan) (17:39): (2303) My adjournment matter is to the Minister for WorkSafe and the TAC, and the action I seek is that WorkCover agents be held accountable for their actions when it comes to duty of care. I am again before the chamber sharing words of an injured worker who has engaged with my office. The person wishes to remain anonymous, but the following words are theirs that they have asked me to share:

I was born with one hand. In 2023, I suffered an injury to my only functioning hand at work. I filed a claim with WorkSafe.

My employer abandoned me. WorkSafe provided me with a claim number, but failed to pass the claim onto the agent for 33 days.

From the start, Gallagher Bassett treated me with contempt. They sent me to an Independent Medical Examiner who stated the employer told him I “liked to play games” and claimed he wasn’t told of my disability. They weaponised falsehoods to deny me help.

They stalled accepting my claim for 75 days, far past the legal limit. After acceptance, Gallagher Bassett withheld my payments for an extra 58 days, claiming my file was transferring to Allianz. This was a lie. The agent and WorkSafe later confirmed no such transfer ever existed.

They fabricated a narrative to starve a disabled worker of his income.

In September 2024, I required surgery on my only hand. Total dependency was guaranteed. Yet, the claims manager refused to organise an ADL until after my surgery, ignoring medical advice.

He admitted he delayed care approvals until 18 days post-surgery simply so he could “bundle” the paperwork.

My ability to use a toilet was less important than his administrative convenience.

I was left in squalor. I was forced to lie in my own urine and excrement. I could not feed myself. I was left to eat like a dog from a bowl because I could not hold a utensil.

And following a second surgery in late 2025, knowing I would again have no functioning hands, they did it again. Gallagher Bassett approved a “handheld” hygiene device physically impossible for a man with no hands to use.

My trust that WorkSafe and its agents are capable of meeting their statutory obligations has been completely eroded. They looked at me losing my independence and treated me with suspicion, derision, and utter neglect. This is cruelty funded by the Victorian public.