Industrial manslaughter will become a criminal offence in South Australia under proposed new laws, with offenders facing a maximum 20-year jail term.
The Labor government will introduce the changes to parliament this week.
The laws also allow for fines of up to $18 million for companies if they are reckless or grossly negligent in breaching work health and safety rules with conduct that results in death.
Attorney-General Kyam Maher said every South Australian deserved to be safe in the workplace.
"Industrial manslaughter laws recognise that, while tragic workplace incidents do occur from time to time, it's not an accident when people deliberately cut corners and place worker's lives at risk," he said.
"It's a crime and it will be treated like one."
The bill also brings SA's laws into line with Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia and the ACT.
It was drafted following significant community consultation with unions, business groups and work health and safety experts.
The new laws don't impose any extra duties on employers but ensure that when there's a breach and someone dies the penalty reflects the severity of the crime, the government said.
"The overwhelming majority of businesses in South Australia do the right thing and take the health and safety of their workers seriously," Mr Maher said.
"This legislation sends a clear message to any dodgy operators that are reckless or grossly negligent with their workers' health and safety that they will be held to account."
SA Unions secretary Dale Beasley said the threat of a prison sentence was important as even an $18m fine could be seen as little more than a speeding fine on a multi-billion-dollar project.
"Workers and their families need to know that their lives are more than just a line on a balance sheet," he said.
"This isn't about just wanting to lock up bad bosses, it's about employers taking safety seriously and ensuring that incidents don't happen in the first place."
