Hyundai Heavy Subcontractor Death... Bereaved Family vs Company Conflicting Claims

A subcontracted worker at Hyundai Heavy Industries Ulsan Shipyard has died. According to the "Serious Accidents Punishment Act," an industrial accident resulting in one or more deaths is classified as a serious industrial accident. Hyundai Heavy Industries, which has pledged to "eradicate serious accidents," is now facing an emergency.

The bereaved families have set up a mourning site opposite the main gate of the Ulsan headquarters, demanding "an accurate determination of the cause of death and a sincere apology," and have been protesting for 15 days. However, the subcontractor side is making different claims from the families regarding the cause of death.

According to a compilation of reports by Asia Economy on the 29th, Shin Mo (58), who collapsed while working at the 2nd Bay Subassembly Workshop of the Processing and Assembly Department 1 at Hyundai Heavy Industries last month on the 27th, died on the 9th from a subarachnoid hemorrhage (a type of brain hemorrhage). Shin, who belonged to a subcontractor, had been performing grinding work at Hyundai Heavy Industries for over 20 years.

Grinding refers to the process of smoothing the surface of welded steel plates using a grinder. A work schedule from July last year, found while the family was sorting through Shin’s belongings, shows his working hours as 362 hours per month and 62.5 hours per week.

Bereaved family members holding a broken portrait of the deceased. On the 23rd, when the Shin family members tried to enter Hyundai Heavy Industries demanding a meeting with the president, the security guards blocked them, leading to a clash. [Photo by Hyundai Heavy Industries Branch of In-house Subcontractors Union]

The bereaved families claim death from overwork. The Supreme Prosecutors' Office issued an interpretation in the "Serious Accidents Punishment Act Penalty Guide" distributed to local prosecutors last year, stating that brain and cardiovascular diseases leading to death from overwork can also be considered serious industrial accidents.

In response, the families requested the subcontractor to provide work schedules, work instructions, daily work reports, and employment contracts to verify the exact cause of death, but were refused. After filing a complaint with the Ministry of Employment and Labor regarding illegal dispatch, the ministry contacted the subcontractor and only received the work schedules. Subsequently, the families attempted to enter the company to request a meeting with the primary contractor but clashed with security guards.

Shin's family representative collapsed after a physical altercation with Hyundai Heavy Industries security guards [Photo provided by Hyundai Heavy Industries Branch Subcontractor Union]

The subcontractor’s representative expressed frustration and distributed an appeal in front of Hyundai Heavy Industries’ main gate on the 27th. He argued that the working hours for the three months prior to the death did not reach the legal limit of 40 hours per week, making it difficult to consider the death as caused by overwork. He also stated that the requested documents would be submitted to the Ulsan branch of the Ministry of Employment and Labor.

Cooperation company representative Mr. A stated in the appeal, "If the death was due to overwork as claimed by the subcontractor union, they should apply for industrial accident compensation, but they have not done so," and added, "We cannot provide internal company documents such as work instructions and payroll ledgers without proper procedures, but we will provide them appropriately to relevant authorities."

He further rebutted the allegations of illegal dispatch, saying, "There is no direct grinding job within the company; the entire grinding work has been subcontracted for years," and called the illegal dispatch claim "absurd and groundless."

An official from the Ministry of Employment and Labor said, "Investigations into violations of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act due to brain hemorrhage are not common," adding, "If the employer violated mandatory obligations resulting in a fatal accident, there is room to initiate an investigation under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act."

Kim Da-young, a labor attorney at Jungang Labor Law Firm, said, "In determining industrial accidents, even if working hours are below the limit, aggravating factors such as mental stress and excessive workload are increasingly being recognized as causes of industrial accidents," adding, "However, the primary responsibility to prove the causal relationship between work and death lies with the bereaved families, and if the company does not cooperate, it is inevitably difficult to secure the necessary evidence."