A heartbroken widow has spoken out ahead of International Workers’ Memorial Day after her husband died from a devastating lung condition caused by exposure to hazardous working conditions - warning that his death “should never have happened.” 

Lee Walker, a 58-year-old glass worker who was originally from Barnsley, died in early 2025 after years of exposure to dangerous conditions at a Rotherham factory. Prior to his death, he took legal action with the support of his union, Unite, and Thompsons Solicitors. 

During their investigations, his legal team obtained access to a report commissioned by his employer, Beatson Clark. The report revealed that the company’s water systems were contaminated with dangerously high levels of Aspergillus spores and fungi. 

These biological contaminants were found to have been released into the air as vapour clouds during routine operations. 

The company later admitted liability for failing to protect him and exposing him to conditions that caused his illness and agreed to a six-figure settlement reflecting the impact of his illness, including care needs and lost earnings.  

But the admission and payout came too little, too late. Just weeks later, Lee was admitted to Diana, Princes of Wales Hospital in Grimsby with a severe chest infection, where he sadly passed away.  

His widow, Lisa, said his death was “entirely preventable” - and warned that too many families are still paying the price for unsafe workplaces. 

“Lee’s life was taken far too soon because of a work‑related illness that should never have happened. We were meant to have decades ahead of us - years filled with plans, laughter, and love. Instead, those years were taken from us, leaving a hole in my life that can never be filled.  

“On Workers’ Memorial Day, we remember people like him - but he should still be here.” 

Lisa, who now lives in Cleethorpes, Lincolnshire - where the couple bought their forever home shortly before Lee died - is expected to be one of many family members attending the Leeds TUC International Workers’ Memorial Day event on 28 April 2026, in memory of loved ones lost to work-related illness and injury.  

She will be joined by members of her legal team at Thompsons Solicitors, which is campaigning for stronger enforcement of workplace safety laws to prevent other families from suffering similar losses. 

Speaking ahead of the event, the firm’s Head of Personal Injury, Philip Liptrot, said: “Health and safety is not red tape. It is a fundamental right - the right of every worker to come home from work unharmed.” 

A loving husband, father, brother, and uncle, Lee began working at Beatson Clark’s glass manufacturing site in 2008 as a forehearth specialist, helping maintain machinery that shapes molten glass into bottles and jars. 

But the role exposed him to dangerous levels of Aspergillus spores - a type of airborne fungus that can cause serious illness – and in 2017, he developed breathlessness, extreme fatigue and violent coughing fits. The coughing became so severe it caused a serious rib injury requiring surgery. 

He was later diagnosed with chronic hypersensitivity pneumonitis - a life-limiting lung condition caused by inhaling fungal particles. 

His health declined rapidly, and by 2019 he was too ill to work, and he passed away in February 2025. 

Lisa added: “It took four long years for the company to admit liability. Lee received his compensation while he was in hospital, just two weeks before he died, never getting the chance to spend a single penny. No amount of money could ever make up for the life he lost, or the future we were robbed of. 

“Husbands and wives go to work every day trusting that they will do so safely. For Lee, that trust was broken and he paid the price with his life. I remember him with love, pride, and heartbreak. I stand with everyone who has lost someone they love - their stories remind us why safety must never be an afterthought.” 

Philip Liptrot of Thompsons Solicitors added: “Too often we see the consequences of avoidable failures by employers. These are tragedies that should never have happened - they are the result of basic safety measures being ignored by employers. 

“This is yet another example of a devastating and entirely preventable death. Mr Walker was exposed to dangerous conditions at work and paid the ultimate price, and his case sadly reflects the wider human cost of industrial disease which extends far beyond the individual worker. 

“In many cases partners become carers. Children watch a parent’s health deteriorate. Families are left coping with grief, anger and financial hardship - sometimes decades after the original exposure.” 

Recent Health and Safety Executive figures show the worrying scale of workplace harm in Britain: 

  • 1.9 million workers are currently suffering from a work-related illness  
  • 124 workers were killed in work-related accidents (2024-2025) 

According to Hazards Campaign, those figures could be significantly higher - raising serious questions about how much of Britain’s workplace health crisis is going unrecorded, unreported, and unaddressed. 

Unite director of legal services, Stephen Pinder, said: “This is a shocking case of a worker being failed by his employer. Unite legal services was proud to support our member and his family in securing justice through Thompsons Solicitors. 

“Too many workers are still being exposed to unsafe conditions. Too often employers are prepared to play fast and loose with workers’ safety to boost their profits.” 

"This tragic case demonstrates the value of everyone being in a union. Workers receive free legal support, and victims, or their families, receive 100 per cent of compensation." 

International Workers’ Memorial Day, marked every year on 28 April, remembers those killed, injured or made ill through work, and calls for stronger protections to prevent further loss of life. The Leeds TUC International Workers’ Memorial Day event will take place at 11:45am on 28 April 2026, at Leeds City Art Gallery & Henry Moore Institute.