Two British airline masseuses who developed repetitive strain injury from massaging first-class passengers were awarded $482,000 in compensation Thursday, according to UK media reports.
Jayne Evans, 40, and Michelle Hindmarch, 35, were forced to abandon their careers after sustaining chronic muscle pain while administering intensive shiatsu pressure massages at Virgin Atlantic's lounge at Heathrow airport in London.
The High Court heard most of their customers were men who required heavier hand and finger pressure, and no lubricant oils could be used as they were fully clothed.
Evans was sent home after a particularly strenuous session in October 2005 in which a "large male client" asked her to massage even harder than usual.
Virgin Atlantic did not dispute liability for the women's injuries but contested the amount of compensation and the extent of their disabilities.
Evans, from Ruislip, Middlesex, who still works for Virgin on the administrative side, was awarded $369,278 damages against the airline, the Metro newspaper reported.
Hindmarch, of Banstead, Surrey, who has left the company, received $111,236.
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