35 Cases of Suspected Illegal and Unfair Practices Involving Tower Cranes Detected

Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's Interim Report on Special Inspection of Tower Crane Strikes

The government, conducting a special inspection on the tower crane strike, has detected 35 suspected cases of illegal and unfair practices and has launched an investigation.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced on the 24th through an interim report on the special inspection of tower crane strikes at 164 construction sites conducted jointly by multiple ministries (Ministry of Employment and Labor, National Police Agency, local governments, etc.) from the 15th to the 22nd, that 33 suspected cases of violation of duty of good faith and 2 suspected cases of improper solicitation of money or goods were identified.

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Won Hee-ryong is conducting a special inspection of tower crane operations and illegal activities at a housing reconstruction site in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport]

First, the suspected cases of improper solicitation of money or goods involved circumstances where two construction sites indirectly demanded 400,000 KRW per lifting operation. Currently, after securing additional evidence, administrative disciplinary committee reviews and hearing procedures are underway. If actual illegal or unfair acts are confirmed, disqualification sanctions will be imposed, and police investigations will be requested if necessary.

The suspected cases of violation of duty of good faith include ▲refusal of legitimate work instructions ▲intentional slow operation causing damage to construction ground and machinery breakdown ▲non-compliance with working hours, among others.

Additionally, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport plans to actively respond by requesting police investigations into 28 cases, including improper solicitation of money or goods and hiring fraud, reported to the Illegal Acts Response Center of the Regional Land Management Office.

Currently, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport is conducting special inspections on about 700 construction sites nationwide in cooperation with multiple ministries, and is working on establishing a manpower pool for tower crane operators and implementing operation record devices.

Won Hee-ryong, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, stated, “During the remaining inspection period, we will closely examine the damage situation at construction sites and proceed with disciplinary procedures and investigation requests swiftly for confirmed illegal and unfair acts. To minimize damage caused by construction delays and to normalize the sites as soon as possible, active cooperation from related organizations and agencies is necessary during the special inspection process.”