Employers' Liability for Occupational Stress and Death from Overwork in the United States and the United Kingdom.

The premise of this paper is that those persons who excessively overwork can die as a result, through stress-related illness or suicide. This paper undertakes a comparative analysis of the legal treatment of stress-related illness at work and, in particular, death by overwork (known as Karoshi in Japan). The legal rules governing this aspect of health and safety in the US and the UK will be considered primarily, because these are countries where this problem has not been properly recognized and, accordingly, legislators and the judiciary in both the US and the UK have largely failed to address it. Despite this, it is a fact that organizations in these countries have the worst record for requiring their workforce to work excessively and/or for long hours. Research has shown that this leads to stress-related illness and sometimes death by overwork in organizations. The failure to take legal action to deal with this problem in the US and the UK is all the more surprising and disappointing because these countries (along with Japan where it is legally recognized) have the richest economies in the world. It is now accepted that a working pattern and culture of long hours and excessive working adversely affect workers by putting at risk their physical and/or mental health, and it is important to consider how workers in this position are dealt with by employers and within the legal framework of both jurisdictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]