A stonemason suffered a broken nose in a row – started over a packet of cigarettes.
Darrel Walker was hurt as he tried to restrain Miles Ogden in an attempt to break up the argument at the Brighouse-based firm.
He suffered a broken nose which had to be manipulated back into place under anaesthetic, Kirklees Magistrates’ Court heard.
Builder Ogden pleaded guilty to a charge of assault occasioning actual bodily harm.
His solicitor Sonia Kidd said: “The argument started because this man failed to buy cigarettes during the lunchtime break.
“The incident escalated and the supervisor got involved.”
Prosecutor Robert Campbell explained to the Huddersfield court that all of the parties involved were working at Associated Stone Masonry on April 7 last year.
He said: “There was a confrontation between the defendant and another worker, not the victim.
“The victim, however, got involved, because he was the supervisor on shift.”
Mr Walker went to break up the men before the situation escalated and took hold of Ogden, who swung a punch at his boss.
This missed but knocked Ogden to the floor and Mr Walker got in top of him to restrain him.
During this the supervisor did admit to grabbing Ogden by the genitals, which Mr Campbell conceded was “perhaps not a Home Office approved technique”.
At this stage 22-year-old Ogden “lost his temper completely” and threw one punch at Mr Walker which “connected with his nose and broke it, requiring it to be manipulated back into place.”
District Judge Michael Fanning considered CCTV footage of the attack, which showed Mr Walker walked away with blood dripped onto his T-shirt.
Ogden, of Denbrook Way in Bradford, had pleaded not guilty to the offence but the changed his plea to guilty on the day of his trial.
Mrs Kidd said: “He was clearly upset that he’d been damaged in the way described, that the supervisor had taken to restrain him in that way.
“(This) caused significant pain and discomfort and he’s responded to that.
“ This is an argument over going to the shop to buy cigarettes and, because this man failed to buy cigarettes for the gentleman, this incident escalated.”
Ogden was sentenced to a community order with 33 days of rehabilitation activities and 160 hours of unpaid work.
Judge Fanning told him to treat the order as a direct alternative to custody.
Ogden was also ordered to pay £400 compensation to his victim as well as £400 towards prosecution costs.
