Two derelict social media sites still display final messages from those who knew the account owners: "RIP, we will miss you."

The sites belonged to two teenagers who lost their lives while working in an Illinois corn bin owned by Haasbach LLC. The cause of death was described as "traumatic asphyxiation".

On July 28, 2010, Wyatt Whitebread, 14, Alex Pacas, 19, and Will Piper, 20, were working on a pile of corn 30-feet deep while the bin’s unloading system was in operation. The workers were "walking down the corn," breaking up clumps of damp grain to make it flow onto a conveyor.

Whitebread began to sink into the pile as Piper and Pacas attempted to rescue him. Within seconds, Whitebread was completely engulfed in the corn, followed by Pacas. Piper was able to keep his head above the corn and was rescued as another worker, age 15, escaped the bin and went for help.

On December 7, 2011, the Department of Labor (DOL) reached an agreement with Haasbach LLC in Mount Carroll, IL, resolving 25 citations issued by the department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). In addition, the Department's Wage and Hour Division assessed civil monetary penalties for child labor violations.

OSHA cited Haasbach for 12 willful, 12 serious and 1 other-than-serious violation of the agency's grain standards. Following the December 7th agreement, the company must pay $200,000 in penalties, an amount reduced from the original fines of $550,000, based on Haasbach's size and assets.

The company failed to provide the workers with proper equipment, precautions and training. In addition, the workers should not have been in the bin while machinery was running.

A separate investigation by the DOL's Wage and Hour Division found that Haasbach violated the Fair Labor Standards Act's child labor provisions by employing workers under age 18 to perform hazardous jobs. Under the agreement, Haasbach will pay $68,125. Haasbach employed at least 4 underage workers at the time of the accident.

The company also faces two wrongful death lawsuits from the families of the deceased, as well as a personal injury suit by Piper. All three suits seek damages in excess of $50,000.

Haasbach, previously owned by three large farming families in Warren, IL, is no longer in business and has sold its Mount Carroll property to another grain storage operation. Its officials have neither issued any public apology nor sent a message of condolence to the families or community.

This weeks post was written by guest blogger Chris Hinchcliffe, Senior Environmental, Health & Safety consultant for Delta Simons Environmental Consultants.

On 17 February 2011, Cotswold Geotechnical Holdings Ltd was fined £385K after being found guilty of corporate manslaughter under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007. This was the first case in UK law under this Act. The court took into account that a greater fine would have tipped the company into insolvency and thus the judge allowed the business to pay the fine over a 10 year period. Charges against the sole director were dropped due to the worsening state of his health.

The company allowed an employee to work in a narrow 3.5 metre deep pit with no supported sides and it collapsed and killed him. The court findings were that they allowed employees to carry out such work knowingly and supplied no training, method statement, risk assessment or adequate information.

The Act applies across the UK and also extends to offshore installations covered by UK criminal law. The Act creates an offence whereby an organization will be guilty if the way in which its activities are managed or organised causes a person’s death and amounts to a gross breach of a relevant duty of care owed to that person. This breach must lie mainly with the senior management team. The Act extends to companies and partnerships but not to individual directors.

A business can face an unlimited fine if convicted and ordered to publicize the conviction, which could have significant PR implications. Cotswold Geotechnical only has four employees currently and larger businesses should note that normal fines will seldom be less than £500K.

The outcome of the case should lead businesses to review their health and safety policies to ensure their management systems and work instructions are up-to-date. Staff should be fully aware of those policies and trained regularly on any important changes. Line management should supervise and audit work so that breaches are detected and corrected early.

Do you think that fault should lie with the corporation?  Do you think similar legislation would pass in the United States?