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Towards quantifiable metrics warranting industry-wide corporate death penalties

  • Joshua M. Pearce*
  • *Corresponding author for this work
  • Michigan Technological University

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Scientific › peer-review

11 Citations (Scopus)
147 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

In the singular search for profits, some corporations inadvertently kill humans. If this routinely occurs throughout an industry, it may no longer serve a net positive social purpose for society and should be eliminated. This article provides a path to an objective quantifiable metric for determining when an entire industry warrants the corporate death penalty. First, a theoretical foundation is developed with minimum assumptions necessary to provide evidence for corporate public purposes. This is formed into an objective quantifiable metric with publicly-available data and applied to two case studies in the U.S.: the tobacco and coal mining industries. The results show the American tobacco industry kills 4 times more people per year than it employs, and the American coal-mining industry kills more than one American every year for every coal miner employed. The results clearly warrant industry-wide corporate death penalties for both industries in America. Future work is discussed to ensure industries only exist to benefit humanity in all the societies in which they operate.

Original languageEnglish
Article number62
JournalSocial Sciences
Volume8
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2019
MoE publication typeA1 Journal article-refereed

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

  1. SDG 8 - Decent Work and Economic Growth
    SDG 8 Decent Work and Economic Growth
  2. SDG 16 - Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions
    SDG 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

Keywords

  • Corporate corruption
  • Corporate death penalty
  • Corporate misconduct
  • Emissions
  • Environmental externalities
  • Ethics in organizations
  • Pollution
  • Public management

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