SCHOLAR: DANGEROUS JOBS

Street/ Suite Crime (TIMOTHY- RYAN LUIS 100319334)

There are many forms of elite deviance in our society.  They, according to conflict theory, are not punished in the same manner as street crime.  This is because according to the theory, the societal structure is designed to maintain the status quo, the very standard that the wealthy had created upon the formation of our society.  Some forms of elite deviance are negligence, exploitation, bribery, fraud, embezzlement, pollution and collusion.  These are contrasted against street crimes such as theft and or assault.  Street crime are usually 1 to 1, localized, low physical harm, low cost and are dealt with in the criminal justice system.  Elite or suite crime usually start 1 to 1 but it resonates to groups and societies.  When I say resonate I mean that it spreads to affect more people.  These elite crimes cause extreme physical harm such as adverse effects from pollution.  Elite crime are high cost and have limited response.  In our society there are twice as many workplace deaths when in comparison to homicides.  These crimes are a result of employers seeking or are in the pursuit of capital or profit.  This is a conflict explained well in Marxist ideology that those who do not own the means of production get exploited.  In this case the worker chose to work under conditions which would evidently cause danger. 

              When talking about the top ten most dangerous jobs, it is ironic that policing are not on the list as their propaganda always claims that their job is one of the most risky.  I would encourage them to refer to the Globe and Mail’s article, “And the top 10 most dangerous jobs are…”.  It certainly is a dangerous world for loggers, fisheries workers, pilots, roofers, iron workers, garbage collectors, electrical workers, truck drivers, farmers and construction workers.  Therefore, I would encourage police to take note of these jobs before even beginning to complain that their job is the most dangerous.  I think the issue here seems to be that those in that top ten list need to mobilize their workers for better pay.  If they can mobilize like the police, there is a better opportunity to get higher pay.  Although I am not saying that doing those jobs would be any safer, I am at least specifying that having fair pay would give them an increased quality of life.  I believe that this exploitation really needs to be addressed and that these workers really should receive some form of danger pay.