청 주례회동…President Moon "Regret over Gwangju Collapse Accident... Urgent Need for Special Measures and Action"
[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Son Seon-hee] Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum announced on the 21st that the 52-hour workweek system, which will be expanded to workplaces with 5 to 49 employees starting next month on the 1st, "will be applied from July 1 without a separate grace period."
According to the Office for Government Policy Coordination, Prime Minister Kim reportedly made this statement during a weekly meeting with President Moon Jae-in at the Blue House, where they discussed the preparation status for the 52-hour workweek system and government support measures. Citing a survey by the Korea Federation of SMEs showing that 93% of workplaces with 5 to 49 employees are "capable of implementing" the 52-hour workweek system, Kim explained the reason for not having a grace period by saying, "Supplementary legislation such as flexible working hours has been completed, and considering the additional extended work hours (8 hours) granted to workplaces with 5 to 29 employees (which account for 95% of the target workplaces)."
However, Prime Minister Kim reported to President Moon that "for some industries and workplaces, such as the root industry, where difficulties are expected due to the expanded implementation of the 52-hour workweek system, the government will implement all possible support measures to ensure the system is firmly established on site." He added, "Focusing on related ministries including the Ministry of Employment and Labor and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, agency heads and key executives will directly visit workplaces to listen to their difficulties and encourage tailored solutions to on-site problems."
Meanwhile, regarding the recent Gwangju building collapse accident and the Icheon logistics warehouse fire, President Moon and Prime Minister Kim discussed the related recovery situation. Prime Minister Kim said about the Gwangju collapse accident, "The exact cause is currently under investigation, but it is presumed that the main cause of this accident, like previous ones, is not the absence of a system but a lack of enforcement at the site." He added, "To prevent recurrence of collapse accidents during building demolition, a separate expert task force (TF) will be formed to thoroughly review overall on-site issues by August and develop measures focused on enhancing enforcement."
In response, President Moon expressed regret, saying, "Despite several measures taken so far, similar accidents continue to occur," and emphasized, "Now, urgent and drastic measures and actions are desperately needed to break this vicious cycle of backward accidents," according to the Office for Government Policy Coordination.
President Moon also urged Prime Minister Kim, "To prevent recurrence of such types of accidents, please thoroughly inspect measures centered on the 'site' and prepare measures that can properly function on site."
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