Organizational Accidents: The Impact of Fragmentation and Uncertainty on Professional Life in High Risk Contexts

Monday, 7 July 2025: 15:00-16:45
Location: FSE031 (Faculty of Education Sciences (FSE))
RC17 Sociology of Organization (host committee)
TG04 Sociology of Risk and Uncertainty

Language: English

Several decades ago, sociology contributed to the realization that industrial accidents are an organizational phenomenon, rather than the result of the actions of rogue workers. This understanding has been critical in development of strategies for accident prevention, risk management and disaster recovery but the recent introduction of further complexity into organizational life suggests the concept of an ‘organizational accident’ needs a critical re-examination.

Responsibility for risk management in critical public and industrial infrastructure is now typically fragmented across multiple organizations which, in turn, introduces significant uncertainty in managing public safety risk. Fragmentation also extends to employment patterns for the professionals whose expertise is critical in day-to-day risk management activities. Concurrently, these professionals are being called upon to manage the imperatives of emerging risks such as security, climate change and increasing digitalization.

This session aims to stimulate discussion to recast the concept of organizational accident for future risk management.

We welcome empirical and theoretical papers that address questions such as:

  • How does the precarious nature of work impact risk management in the context of disaster prevention and recovery?
  • How do competing goals beyond simply profitability (such as climate change and security) impact safety-related risk management?
  • How do professionals react to this changing organizational environment?
  • How important are innovative technologies (eg big data and AI) in responding to this new environment?
  • What is the continuing or changing role of organizations and professional associations in influencing workers?
  • Should we continue to consider accidents as organizational phenomena?
Session Organizers:
Jan HAYES, RMIT University, Australia and Sarah MASLEN, Australia
Oral Presentations
Risk Monetisation: A Service or a Disservice to Effective Risk Management Practices in the Workplace?
Carolina BONEMER CURY, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil
From the Lab to the Industrial Park: Enactment of Professional Knowledge in the Energy Transition
Jan HAYES, RMIT University, Australia; Sarah MASLEN, Australia
Understanding Organizational and Industrial Risk. from Environment to Territory
Olivier GUILLAUME, EDF Lab, France
The French Ground Forces on the Frontlines of the Digital Revolution: Understanding the Technological Transformation of Command at the Intersection of Professional Identity, Organization, and Activity through the Case of Junior Infantry Officers.
Yanis HANKAOUI, Laboratoire Territoires Techniques et Sociétés CNRS, Ecole des Ponts ParisTech, U Gustave Eiffel, France
Beyond Production: A Sociological Study of Occupational Hazards and Their Impact on the Health of Workers at a Car Plant in Tangier
Marroun JAAFAR, Morocco; Milouda EL HARATI, Faculty of Letters and Humanities, Abdelmalek Essaadi University, Tetouan, Morocco, Morocco; Manal LAKHBIAZ LAKHBIAZ, Faculty of Letters and Humanities, Abdelmalek Essaadi University, Tetouan, Morocco, Morocco; Asmae EL BEKRI, Faculty of Letters and Humanities, Abdelmalek Essaadi University, Tetouan, Morocco, Morocco; Ikram MOUNA, Faculty of Letters and Humanities, Abdelmalek Essaadi University, Tetouan, Morocco, Morocco; Karima EL OUEZZANI TAYBI, Faculty of Letters and Humanities, Abdelmalek Essaadi University, Tetouan, Morocco, Morocco
See more of: RC17 Sociology of Organization
See more of: TG04 Sociology of Risk and Uncertainty
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