Korea Federation of SMEs Conducts Survey on Safety and Health Management System for Participating Companies
Even if they participated in the Ministry of Employment and Labor's safety and health management system establishment consulting, it was found that it takes time to actually establish and implement the safety and health management system. The Korea Federation of SMEs (Chairman Kim Ki-moon) announced the results of the "Survey on the Effects of Participation in Safety and Health Management System Establishment Consulting" conducted on 75 workplaces with fewer than 50 employees that participated in this year's Ministry of Employment and Labor safety and health management system establishment consulting on the 7th.
This survey was conducted to understand the actual situation on site in response to some labor circles' claims that workplaces with fewer than 50 employees can easily establish a safety and health management system by paying only a small consulting fee for a short period. According to the survey, 60.0% of companies that participated in the safety and health management system establishment consulting still have not established or implemented the safety and health management system according to the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.
Regarding the reasons for not yet establishing or implementing the safety and health management system, about half (46.7%) cited "lack of personnel to perform tasks such as safety experts." There were also many responses stating "mandatory requirements are too difficult and unclear" (24.4%) and "industry-specific customized consulting was not provided" (15.6%).
In particular, more than half (56.0%) of the respondent companies answered that even if they participated in the safety and health management system establishment consulting, it would take "more than six months" to actually establish and implement the safety and health management system. Only 1.3% responded that they were able to establish and implement the safety and health management system immediately after receiving the consulting.
Furthermore, it was found that an additional average of 60 million KRW is required beyond the consulting fee to implement all the points pointed out in the consulting. Lee Myung-ro, Head of the Human Resources Policy Division at the Korea Federation of SMEs, said, "It is reasonable to consider that it takes more than two years to establish a safety and health management system through consulting on site, implement it according to the site, and manage it," adding, "Considering the small scale of small businesses, it is urgent to conduct joint safety manager support projects by industry and region, and to expand government and local government support for professional personnel and labor costs."
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