> Since it has been mentioned elsewhere that the threat of lawyers is higher in the US, in Germany you are personally liable in many industries. So those dead workers lead to criminal investigations into the people in charge which can mean years in prison and fines.

Don't know where you got the idea it's different in California. What do you think happens if you negligently lead to deaths? It's as criminal in California to negligently kill your employees as it is in Germany. It's not some lawless land of corporate freedom.

The original post specifically mentioned that the government sanctioned and fined the company to curtail their abuses, they just didn't lead to any directly attributable deaths.