Labor unions and employers clash over workplace safety rules

Although the Serious Accidents Punishment Act went into effect in 2022, fatal industrial accidents continue, leading the government to propose tougher economic sanctions, including fines of up to 5 percent of operating profit. The criteria for suspending a construction company’s operations, previously limited to accidents that killed two or more people at once, will be expanded to cover multiple deaths within a year. The government also plans to introduce a provision allowing construction firms with repeated fatal accidents to have their registrations revoked.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced the measures at a briefing at the government complex in Seoul on the 15th. “Punishment for violations of safety and health measures has mostly been limited to small fines and suspended sentences,” Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon said. “We will not tolerate the repeated occurrence of preventable accidents.”

The ministry will impose fines of up to 5 percent of operating profit on companies that experience three or more fatal accidents within a year. The amount of the fine will vary depending on both the number of deaths and the number of incidents. The minimum fine will be set at 3 billion won. That floor will apply in cases where sales are difficult to estimate, such as for public institutions, or when 5 percent of operating profit would amount to less than 3 billion won.

The ministry will also broaden the criteria it uses to request that the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport suspend a construction company’s operations. The current rule, which applies only when two or more people die in a single accident, will be broadened to include multiple deaths within a year. That change would allow the ministry to request a suspension not only in cases such as the Posco E&C accident, which killed two or more people in a single incident, but also after a series of separate accidents.

A new regulation will allow the cancellation of a construction company’s registration. Under proposed amendments to the Framework Act on the Construction Industry and the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the ministry could request revocation of a firm’s registration if it has received two suspension orders within the past three years and another reason for suspension arises.

The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions said in a statement, “Only part of our demands have been reflected. What is needed are fundamental measures that work in practice at worksites.” The Korea Employers Federation responded, “We cannot help but question whether a policy of harsh punishment is an effective way to prevent serious industrial accidents.”


Hye-Ryung Choi herstory@donga.com