Worker Killed by 'Classic Employee Misconduct.' By Jordan Barab, Confined Space
I've already written about the trench collapse death of William Steadman, 37, who died in a trench collapse on Dec. 15. I noted then that this was an example of 'blame the worker' theory of occupational safety.
'We told him not to climb into that trench.'
'We told him not to climb down into that sump.'
'We told him not to stick his head in that machine to clean it out.'
In this case, the attorney representing Steadman's employer claims that
'None of them were told, 'You go down and dig that trench.' ... Nobody was forced or coerced into doing it. That's not how this company works.'
This means, according to Washington D.C. employer attorney Baruch Fellner*,
depending on the circumstances, the employer could be free of blame. It is, Fellner said, the 'classic employee misconduct defense.'