Research Paper on Corporate Crime Victimization: Identifying and Revealing the Harms

Introduction

While much has been heard and studied about crime victims such as violence against children, women, minority ethnic groups, among others, crimes associated with corporations such as corporate behaviors that risk health and life of employees, consumer fraud, and many have been ignored by policymakers, researchers and victimology (Whyte, 2007). With numerous contradictions surrounding the nature of victimization from the corporate crime, the primary issue has been to identify and reveal the harm done to the "powerless" victims since corporate crime is often seen as victimless (Croall, 2007). The particular lack of direct victimization and clear motives to harm are a significant explanation as to why corporate crime may be seen as not a crime and how victims of corporate crime might not tell that they are victims. Yet, the corporate crimes pose a significant impact to the involved individual and the general public as well (Croall, 2007; Whyte, 2007). Often, corporate crimes are seen as work accidents and victimization perceived as coincidental. Besides employees being the victims as they are typically victims of health and safety violations, the employers are victims as well in cases of embezzlement of funds and theft (Tombs & Williams, 2008). One of the most important things to note when evaluating corporate crimes is the crimes in corporations are perceived in different forms and affect different individuals. For example, it could involve gendered victimization, social status and exploitation, victim-blaming, age victimization, and ethnicity.

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This paper will examine the evidence surrounding the claim that most victims of corporate crime never know that they are victims. Before outlining the specific events of victimization and affected parties, the paper will look at the characteristics of corporate crimes.

Victims of Corporations

Since most or all of the corporate violence victims never attain the absolute description of a victim, victims of corporations can be identified through key features of the victimizing event, as seen in other crimes. In different ways, consumer victims are associated with white-collar crimes and are often invisible since they are unaware of the harm imposed on them (Price & Norris, 2009). Since there is no direct harm, the victim may not be seen as a typical victim; however, it appears less personal since the immediate victims in white-collar crimes are banks, tax authorities, consumers, and other associated parties (Salinger, 2005). In many of these circumstances, the victims of corporate crimes may be excluded from the traditional view of victims. The conventional view accepts conventional constructions of what can be described as a crime. In the connection between white-collar crimes and corporate crimes, corporate crimes deal with the corporation as a whole. These crimes tend to benefit the individual in higher positions or investors as they occur in the workplace.

Victim Blaming

In cases of corporate crime, the victims become the blamed party and have to argue their status as they could be referred to as the criminals, particularly fraud victims. Victim blaming can occur to consumers and workers who could be blamed for neglecting specific health and safety guidelines (Eigenberg & Garland, 2008). Also, the victims could be assumed drunk as Hillsborough victims since it has been seen as a contributory factor. When victim-blaming occurs, most of the events indicate that victimization is a reflection of social divisions since the victim may be lacking sufficient evidence to support their claims. With some of the crimes in corporations holding random effects, it is evident that most of the corporate crimes target relatively powerless individuals (Eigenberg & Garland, 2008). For example, in the events of fraud or other financial related in financial corporates, a victim may be subjected to blaming and humiliation in the event they lack evidence of what happened. More than often, the individuals are victimized and seen as the criminals, which, even after a court case, they may be seen as the criminal due to the lack of absolute description defining the person as the victim. In a different scenario, a victim of corporate violence may be subjected to more violations since most of the employers avoid the consequences (Eigenberg & Garland, 2008; Tombs & Williams, 2008). These contributions add to the analyses of corporate crime victims, implying that the primary focus should be placed in the events surrounding the crime rather than focusing on the situation of the offender and victim. This could result in a proper understanding of the relationship between the victim and the accused of the offender, which could significantly help in dealing with corporate crime.

Similar to conventional crimes, victims of corporate crime may have the same kind of harms as they interact with their workplaces, consumers, and employers as well. For instance, the victims could encounter mental harm, physical harm, economic harm, or emotional harm. As individuals relate in a workplace, one may be subjected to harsh conversation and disrespect by the employers, an occurrence that could be hard to prove for the victim. In such cases, the individual might suffer from emotional or mental harm. On the other hand, other individuals could be exposed to unintentional or intentional physical harm within the corporate (Whyte, 2007). Despite such occurrences holding the definition as crimes, the offenders find it easy turning them into cases of accident, making it difficult for the victims to achieve the right they own as workers (Tombs & Williams, 2008). Women are often faced with physical harm since they could be harassed physically. Economic harm, on the other hand, is associated with financial problems and other losses that may hold monetary value. With the different types of victims of corporate crimes that may encounter, they differ in the organizational context. Victims may face a combination of effects as they try handling the situation with the invisible state of corporate crime. Hence, one of the best ways of exploring and understanding corporate victimization is by looking at other demographic factors like gender, ethnicity, and age as well since they significantly relate.

Gendered Corporate Victimization

The association between corporate crime has been identified with numerous events of victimization occurring. Various criminologists have considered gendered corporate victimization, with the women being the most impacted gender in such cases (Gerber & Weeks, 1992). The feminine nature of women exposes them to gender victimization based on their practices, the products they use, their bodies, and other specific issues such as birth control (Gerber & Weeks, 1992). There have been severe cases surrounding corporate victimization of women which most of them involving organizational deviance such as thalidomide and the Dalkon Shield contraceptive.

In consideration of the case of the Dalkon Shield Contraceptive, it outlines events of corporate crime. Dalkon Shield was an intrauterine contraceptive device (IUD) used by women during the early 1970s and 1980s produced by A.H Robins company in the United States (Horwitz, 2018). The IUD was placed directly in the uterus and prevent unwanted pregnancy. Later on, researchers found that the Dalkon Shield device was responsible for severe injuries to women, such as infertility, death, unwanted pregnancy, and pelvic infection. With a view of the events surrounding this case, one can identify corporate negligence since the device was unsafe for use by the women even though the company was may tremendous sales in the US (Horwitz, 2018). The US Food and Drug Administration never tested the device since it was not considered a drug. However, the elements of the equipment, such as the string design, allowed entry of bacteria, which resulted in infections and, ultimately, complications to the women. Even though the company rejected responsibility for the crimes, they had to pay over $100 million liabilities and claims (Horwitz, 2018). The events surrounding the Dalkon Shield device are a clear indication of the corporate victimization of women and how they might not be aware that they are victims.

Also, thalidomide is another product associated with the corporate victimization of women. Thalidomide was developed as a way of reducing morning sickness during pregnancy and was licensed in the UK in 1958 (Kim & Scialli, 2011). In the United States, FDA hindered its licensing, citing incomplete evidence in its role and functionality. Later, severe effects were identified as it caused congenital disabilities. Thalidomide had caused at least 90,000 miscarriages and thousands of deformed babies (Kim & Scialli, 2011). These events followed a chain of lawsuits from the affected individual. However, Grunenthal and Distillers tried to suppress evidence and denied responsibility (Kim & Scialli, 2011). Despite the distillers compensating the affected individuals and apologized, this is a significant presence on how women become victims of corporate crime unknowingly. A large population of women encounters corporate victimization as they are affected by the idealized portrayal of femininity, use cosmetic products that could affect their health, from the corporation that could be violating health and safety guidelines. Also, women are vulnerable to fraud, as they are seen as less competent when it comes to handling technical activities (Gerber & Weeks, 1992).

Additionally, men are also affected by corporate victimization as they are subjected to various activities defined as "men's work." Often, men are forced to work in places posing high risks of death, such as building, construction industries, and other hard labor corporations. They are subjected to injuries because of the employer's negligence. Such cases end up being described as accidents or criminal behavior by the victims, which primarily poses a significant impact on the silencing of corporate crimes (Whyte, 2007).

Corporate Victims and Age

The issue of age is significant in corporate victimization, whereby, the vulnerable populations like the elderly and children are affected (Croall, 2007). The children and the elderly are subjected to corporate crimes as some corporations could decide to offer services and products to them despite them not requiring them. The elderly could be abused in care homes due to their vulnerability. They are also fragile to fraudulent financial activities as a result of their stable commercial nature. Children, on the other hand, are exploited through the marketing of products as they are susceptible to aggressive marketing.

Corporate Victims and Ethnicity

The globalization of corporate interests has delivered major issues of ethnic segregation as companies may opt to provide goods that are not up to standard or indulge in activities that affected a particular ethnic group. A significant example is the dumping of waste in ethnically different regions, like Africa. For instance, in 2006, Trafigura, a UK mining corporation, dumped about 540,000 litres of toxic waste in Ivory Coast, where 15 people and a hundred thousand others affected (Amnesty International, 2016). The company denied responsibility, and the United Kingdom government ignored any action (Amnesty International, 2016). Such cases deliver a proper definition of how corporate crime associates with ethnicity. Moreover, the sale and exporting of expired and banned products to third world countries by multinational corporations in another portrayal of corporate criminality....