‘STOP the employers getting away with murder,’ angry bereaved relatives said on their Families Against Corporate Killers (FACK) lobby of Parliament on Tuesday.
Hilda Palmer from FACK said: ‘Today is the 2nd reading of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Bill and it is completely inadequate.
‘It doesn’t hold companies fully to account for killing people by gross negligence.
‘We are here to protest at the lack of justice it gives to the families of those who have been killed, also it doesn’t act as a deterrent to employers, some of whom are serial killers.
‘Some companies have killed several people over the years. They’ve only been punished with fines and it doesn’t seem to deter them.
‘We want the bill amended so that individual directors can be held accountable when their gross negligence has killed people.
‘We want it to be easier to hold large companies accountable. That means reform of the “Senior Manager Test”, which is a Get Out of Jail Free Card.’
She added: ‘Trade unions Amicus, the TGWU, UCATT and the GMB have been very active in their campaigns for Corporate Killing legislation, but unfortunately they haven’t made it clear that this bill is fundamentally flawed.’
UCATT Regional Organiser Chris Tiff said: ‘The construction industry is killing construction workers at the rate of two a week.
‘It’s a disgrace. It’s the only industry in the whole of the UK that kills its own workers.
‘UCATT has called on the government to pass a corporate manslaughter bill with teeth. We want directors to be put in prison.’
Holding up her placard, Linda Whelan from County Durham said: ‘This is my son Craig who was killed four-and-a-half years ago aged 23.
‘Craig was a steeplejack working on demolishing a chimney in Bolton. His company was contracted to demolish the chimney.
‘Three managers of the company received an email informing them that the men should not be sent back into the chimney, that there was the possibility of an explosion because there were flammable chemicals within the chimney walls.
‘Two of the managers who read it decided not to tell anybody of the email and they sent Craig, my son, and his work colleague back into the chimney using hot cutting gear.
‘A few hours later there was an explosion and Craig and Paul were killed.
‘After two-and-a-half years there was a trial at the Crown Court when the three managers were up for manslaughter.
‘The trial was supposed to last six weeks. It lasted about 7 days.
‘The charge of manslaughter was dropped and they pleaded guilty under the Health and Safety at Work Act. They got a small fine each.
‘Since then I’ve been fighting for an inquest into my son’s death.’
Linda commented: ‘This bill that is going through is a further cover-up. I feel as though they killed my son and the government is covering up for them. It’s one big cover up.’
Douglas Wright said: ‘My son Mark was killed 18-months ago. He was processing aerosol canisters in a compactor, which should never have happened, and there was an explosion. He was unaware of the dangers.
‘The law they are passing contains no improvements on the existing laws which are totally inadequate.
‘They are just paying lip service. We want to see individuals held accountable where they have been grossly negligent.
‘It’s ridiculous. They can be jailed for misappropriation of funds but if they kill an employee through gross negligence, they just get a fine.’
Linzi Herbertson said: ‘I lost my husband Andrew in 1998. He fell from scaffolding in a factory in Oldham.
‘He had serious head injuries. A doctor pronounced him brain dead a week later and we had to turn off the life support the day after my son’s eighth birthday.
‘I was brought up to respect and abide by the law. If you broke the law you got punished.
‘I was a very naive 25-year-old and I thought someone would be seriously punished, perhaps imprisoned.
‘But instead the company ended up with a £9,000 fine.
‘I felt I’d been punished twice. I’d already lost my husband and then I felt bereft again by this paltry measly fine.
‘Today they are just going to ignore us again. It’s just hypocrisy. They are all for the businessman, not the workers. It’s just more cover up.’
Placards on Tuesday’s demonstration stated: Send Negligent Killer Employers to Jail; Dear Employer, Get Out of Jail Free card, Love from the Government, Multiple Use; Death at Work is No Accident; Is this Justice? Corporate Fraud = Jail, Corporate Killing = Fine.
