1243 'Sanjae Bullyang' Workplaces Including Last Year's Major Accidents... GS, Lotte, Taeyoung Construction 4 Consecutive Years

Ministry of Employment Announces List of Serious Accident Occurrences

Excluded from Government Awards for 3 Years, CEO Safety Training Required

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Last year, there were 1,243 'poor industrial accident' workplaces that either experienced major accidents or fatal accidents, concealed industrial accident incidents, or reported them later than regulations require. Notably, among construction companies ranked within the top 100 in construction capability, GS Construction, Lotte Construction, and Taeyoung Construction were listed as violators for the fourth consecutive year.

According to the 'List of Workplaces Violating Obligations to Prevent Fatal Accidents, etc.' announced by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 29th, there were 1,243 workplaces that violated industrial accident prevention obligations, such as the occurrence of major accidents, under the Industrial Safety and Health Act last year. The number of workplaces on this list was 748 in 2017, 1,400 in 2018, 1,420 in 2019, and 1,446 last year, before slightly decreasing this year. Even if the accident occurred several years ago, companies whose sentences were finalized this year through court trials are included in this year's public list.

Minister of Employment and Labor Ahn Kyung-duk stated, "For workplaces and executives subject to public disclosure under the Industrial Safety and Health Act, various government awards will be restricted for the next three years, and the local employment and labor offices will conduct education to raise the safety awareness of CEOs." He added, "With the enforcement of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act starting January 27 next year, CEOs will be considered subjects of safety and health education simply by the occurrence of a major industrial accident. Companies are strongly urged to utilize the government-distributed guidebooks and industry-specific safety and health self-checklists to once again review their safety and health management systems and do their utmost to establish a safety culture on site."

There were 576 workplaces where major accidents occurred, including GS Construction, Lotte Construction, Dongbu Construction, Samsung C&T, Kumho Tire, and Hyosung Heavy Industries. The construction industry accounted for more than half with 339 workplaces (58.9%), and the majority were workplaces with fewer than 50 employees (484 workplaces, 84%). A major accident is defined as a case where at least one worker dies while working, two or more workers suffer serious injuries requiring more than three months of treatment, or ten or more workers are injured or suffer occupational diseases at once.

Seventeen workplaces had two or more annual deaths due to industrial accidents. These included Hanwha Daejeon Plant (5 deaths in 2018), Daelim Construction (3 deaths in 2017), SK Hynix (3 deaths in 2015), and LG Display Paju Plant (3 deaths in 2015). Twenty-three workplaces, such as Dongnam Precision, STM, and Dongwoo Tech, were caught concealing industrial accident facts. Fifty-nine workplaces, including Samsung Electronics Gwangju Plant and Korea GM Changwon Plant, were fined for failing to report to local employment and labor offices within one month after an industrial accident occurred. Eleven workplaces experienced major industrial accidents such as fires or explosions, including Hanwha Daejeon Plant (5 deaths in 2018) and SH Energy Chemical (2 deaths and 1 injury in 2020).

There were 337 prime contractors who violated safety and health obligations toward subcontracted workers as stipulated in Article 63 of the Industrial Safety and Health Act, including SK Ecoplant, Hoban Industries, and Ssangyong C&E Donghae Plant. Dongkuk Steel Busan Plant earned the dishonor of being a prime contractor with a high proportion of subcontracted worker deaths. Under the 'Prime Contractor-Subcontractor Integrated Industrial Accident Management System' implemented since 2018, workplaces with 500 or more employees in manufacturing, railroad transportation, and urban railroad transportation industries, where the combined fatal accident rate of prime and subcontractors is higher than that of prime contractors alone, are considered 'poor industrial accident workplaces.' The fatal accident rate refers to the ratio of fatal accidents per 10,000 regular employees.