1st Year in Office Kim Sang-su, Construction Association Chairman, "Immediate Amendment Needed for Serious Accident Punishment Act"

Korea Construction Association Chairman Kim Sang-su

On the 2nd, marking his first anniversary in office, Kim Sang-su, President of the Korea Construction Association, identified the Serious Accidents Punishment Act as the biggest challenge facing the construction industry and expressed his commitment to leading efforts for supplementary legislation by persuading the government and political circles.

In a press release on the day, President Kim stated, "If the law is implemented as it stands, companies will inevitably face difficulties in carrying out their projects," adding, "We will simultaneously undertake various efforts, including persuading the National Assembly and the government, to minimize corporate management risks."

The Serious Accidents Punishment Act, which allows for the punishment of management officials in the event of serious accidents such as fatalities, is scheduled to be enforced in January next year.

Reflecting on the past year, President Kim evaluated, "The environment surrounding the construction industry has been challenging due to laws that severely infringe on corporate management autonomy, such as the COVID-19 pandemic crisis, the enactment of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, the introduction of retained earnings tax, and the strengthening of the penalty point system for poor performance," and added, "We will devote all efforts to revitalizing the construction industry."

He emphasized, "We will create a 'construction environment where fair prices are paid and work is done properly' and focus on normalizing public construction project costs," explaining, "Appropriate construction costs contribute to ensuring the safety and lives of construction workers, creating quality jobs, and providing excellent construction quality."

Furthermore, President Kim added, "We will devote ourselves to ensuring that continuous expansion of SOC investment, which has played a role as a problem solver during past national economic crises such as infectious diseases (MERS, SARS, etc.) and financial crises, and construction investments worth 110 trillion won in the public, private, and private investment sectors proceed without disruption, leading to the creation of new construction volumes."

He also expressed his ambition to lead the evolution of the construction industry in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. He stated, "We will break down old and outdated construction industry regulations to rapidly integrate digital construction technologies into construction sites and actively work to establish a construction production system early following the abolition of business area restrictions, thereby fostering a healthy construction industry ecosystem."

He added, "Focusing on providing visiting member company services, we will devote even more effort to supporting members' management activities and handling their grievances," and concluded, "We will focus on strengthening member services and do our best to innovate related organizations so that member companies feel a sense of ownership."