WASHINGTON (Map, News) - An Alabama man whose son died in an industrial accident 15 years ago returned to Capitol Hill Tuesday to press Congress for stiffer penalties against companies that put employees in jeopardy.

Ron Hayes of Fairhope told a Senate committee that little has changed in federal workplace enforcement since his 19-year-old son suffocated beneath 60 tons of corn in a grain silo in 1993. He said the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is still coddling employers that don't protect their workers, in part because Congress has failed to update the minor fines and misdemeanor charges that companies face under current law.

"It's ridiculous. We have prosecution in everything else," he said. "I can kick a mule ... in this country and I'm going to jail." But a business owner can negligently or willfully ignore worker safety and face only a small fine, even in cases of death or serious injury, he said.

He and other witnesses at the hearing argued that managers who disregard safety regulations should be hit with much larger fines and criminal felony charges.

"I want to see a felony charge before I die, guys," Hayes told senators at a Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee hearing. "Just give a father that one thing."

Hayes, who has formed an advocacy group for grieving families, worked with lawmakers several years ago on similar legislation that ultimately stalled.

But Democrats - arguing that the Bush administration has relied on voluntary compliance - are proposing a variety of bills aimed at strengthening oversight.

Sen. Ted Kennedy of Massachusetts, chairman of the education and labor committee, has introduced legislation that would provide new protections for whistleblowers and significantly toughen penalties for employers, including larger fines and, in some cases, years-long prison sentences.

The measure has been stuck in committee, however, with opposition from business groups and many Republicans who question the effectiveness of imposing stiffer penalties alone.