We are all humans, and we – well, most of us, anyway – are grownups and should be able to make our own decisions.

While many of our own decisions will affect only us individually, there are some decisions that could be wrong for others around us – such as family, friends, co-workers, or even the public. While many of us are good, decent, smart people, there are some of us who really choose to put ourselves and others at risk – especially  when it comes to safety and cutting corners to save a few bucks.

[Image courtesy of Flicr user Daniel X. O'Nell via a creative Commons license] Trenches like this one can have safety risks for the public or for workers if there is no proper warning or support. Deep trenches can be deadly, as what happened in New York City earlier this year.

[Image courtesy of Flickr user Daniel X. O’Nell via a Creative Commons license] Trenches like this one can have safety risks for the public or for workers if there is no proper warning or support. Deep trenches can be deadly, as what happened in New York City earlier this year.

And when the goal is to save money on the front end, it often leads to tragedy and even more expense on the back end. And a recent case in New York City is a vivid illustration of the cost of bad decisions.

According to an article in The New York Times, two construction managers have been charged with manslaughter after a deep trench collapsed on a construction site, killing a worker under tons of dirt. According to the article, a 22-year-old immigrant (read: non-English speaker) was working in a deep pit when the walls collapsed around him, killing him.

The managers apparently had cut corners, despite state and  city regulations that mandated that any trench or pit on a construction site that is deeper than five feet must have support to avoid collapse; the trench involved in this incident was reportedly 14 feet deep without support.

The manslaughter charges come about because a private inspector had alerted the managers to the risks and regulations regarding the trenches before the incident occurred. Reportedly, one of the managers had warned workers and told them to get out of the trench, but no one left and the collapse happened a short time later. The managers are pleading not guilty to the charges on the argument that language was apparently a barrier – they claimed to have done “due diligence” by warning the workers in English, but most or all the workers spoke Spanish.

Rightfully so, prosecutors called this tragedy “preventable and avoidable,” which indeed is true. Spending a few hundred bucks on some supports of the walls of the pit could have saved at least one life, and hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees and the potential loss of a business license and heavy fines. For the sake of their company and themselves, they had better hope they can beat this rap and live with the fact that their actions killed another person. I am not sure I could sleep at night if I were in their shoes. But maybe that’s just me.

Regulations don’t necessarily force us into making the “right” choices, but they do impose penalties for making the wrong ones that are not in the best interest of yourself, your company or your workers. In some cases, regulations are good, especially when it comes to keeping others safe.