Human Rights Commission: "Need to Expand Scope of 'Workplace Harassment' and Establish Punishment Regulations"

National Human Rights Commission of Korea building. Photo by National Human Rights Commission

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] The National Human Rights Commission of Korea announced on the 9th that it has recommended the Minister of Employment and Labor to "expand the scope of workplace harassment and establish punishment regulations."

The Commission pointed out, "Incidents of 'workplace harassment' continue to occur, such as verbal abuse by IT company CEOs and family members of conglomerate heads, and the suicide of an apartment security worker," adding, "Despite workplace harassment being a serious human rights violation that undermines human dignity, insufficient regulations have created blind spots in protection and limited effectiveness."

The Commission recommended that "under the current Labor Standards Act, 'workplace harassment' is limited to harassment by employers and workers within the workplace, and external harassment by third parties such as customers, apartment residents, or relatives of company representatives is not regulated," urging that harassment by third parties should also be regulated through legal amendments.

The Commission suggested expanding the scope of 'workplace harassment' under the current Labor Standards Act. Proposed measures include broadening the range of perpetrators from the existing 'employer or worker' to 'anyone,' or expanding the application scope of Article 41 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (preventive measures against health damage caused by verbal abuse from customers).

Furthermore, the Commission stated, "Although the Labor Standards Act prohibits workplace harassment, there are no provisions to punish perpetrators, which could render the relevant clause merely declarative," recommending the establishment of punishment regulations for perpetrators and appropriate sanctions for employers who fail to take necessary measures.

Additionally, the Commission recommended extending the prohibition of workplace harassment under the Labor Standards Act to workplaces with 'four or fewer employees,' which are currently exempt, and designating preventive education as mandatory legal training.