When does a worker's death become murder?

Abstract

During the past 2 decades, a growing number of manslaughter and even murder charges have been brought against employers in cases involving the death of workers on the job. In this commentary, the author reviews some of these recent cases and looks at other periods in American history when workers' deaths were considered a form of homicide. He examines the social forces that shape how we define a worker's death: as an accidental, chance occurrence for which no individual is responsible, or as a predictable result of gross indifference to human life for which management bears criminal responsibility. He asks whether there is a parallel between the conditions of 19th-century laissez-faire capitalism that led to popular movements promoting workplace safety and the move in recent decades toward deregulation and fewer restraints on industry that has led state and local prosecutors to criminalize some workplace accidents. Despite an increased federal presence, the activities of state and local district attorneys perhaps signal a redefinition of the popular understanding of employers' responsibility in maintaining a safe workplace.