Beyond the incident: examining criminal and coronial court documents to explore the impact of workplace fatalities on coworkers

When workplace fatalities occur, the coworkers of the victims are exposed to traumatic experiences that can significantly affect them for years. This retrospective document analysis from criminal and coronial court documents, examined the exposure and impact experienced by coworkers when workplace fatalities occur. The findings identify the experiences coworkers encounter when confronted with a workplace fatality, as well as their peritraumatic and posttraumatic responses to the trauma. This study reveals that some coworkers subsequently develop secondary or associated symptoms such as depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, adjustment disorder, anxiety disorder, suicidal ideation and ongoing difficulties in interpersonal relationships, which lead to long-lasting and debilitating impact on them. This study shows that when a workplace fatality occurs, the elements of exposure and the trauma responses in coworkers are significant.