Captain not an “employer” in the sense of the Working Conditions Act

In the cassation case in which Linda van der Hut complained about the ruling of the court that the captain of the ship on which a fatal industrial accident occurred can be considered an ‘employer’ within the meaning of the Working Conditions Act, the Supreme Court overturned the conviction. The Supreme Court considered, among other things:

‘The mere fact that the defendant, at the time the industrial accident occurred, was in charge of the sailing ship as its captain and therefore also of its crew does not mean that he was in such a (contractual) relationship of authority to those crew members that he can be considered an employer in the aforementioned sense. Nor does it follow from the circumstance that the defendant ‘appears to have the necessary influence’ within the family business of which [co-defendant B.V.] is a part.

Read the full judgement here.