14-10. An issue of the journal Occupational Hazards presented some information about what happens when OSHA refers criminal complaints about willful violations of OSHA standards to the U.S.

Department of Justice (DOJ). In one 20-year period, OSHA referred 119 fatal cases allegedly involving willful violations of OSHA to the DOJ for criminal prosecution. The DOJ declined to pursue 57% of them, and some were dropped for other reasons. Of the remaining 51 cases, the DOJ settled 63% with pretrial settlements involving no prison time. So, counting acquittals, of the 119 cases OSHA referred to the DOJ, only 9 resulted in prison time for at least one of the defendants. “The Department of Justice is a disgrace,” charged the founder of an organization for family members of workers killed on the job.

One possible explanation for this low conviction rate is that the crime in cases like these is generally a misdemeanor, not a felony, and the DOJ generally tries to focus its attention on felony cases. What implications does this have for how employers should manage their safety programs? Why?