Gyeonggi Province will carry out improvement projects for 70 rest facilities this year to support on-site workers who lack rest facilities or have poor rest conditions due to outdated facilities.
On the 29th, Gyeonggi Province announced that in response to the amendment of the "Industrial Safety and Health Act" this year, which mandates the installation of rest facilities at all workplaces, it will implement the "On-site Worker Rest Facility Improvement Project" to ease the burden on employers for installing rest facilities, guarantee workers' rest rights, and improve working environments.
The amendment to the Industrial Safety and Health Act stipulates that workplaces with 20 or more regular employees, and workplaces with 10 or more employees including at least 2 workers in seven vulnerable occupations such as telephone counselors, must install rest facilities. Failure to install or comply with installation and management standards will result in fines.
Accordingly, Gyeonggi Province will invest a total of 1 billion KRW, including 300 million KRW from the provincial budget and 700 million KRW from city and county budgets, to support rest facility improvement projects at 70 locations including social welfare facilities, nursing hospitals, and small and medium manufacturing companies across 29 cities and counties in the province.
The support scale is ▲ 20 million KRW for facility improvements ▲ 30 million KRW for new installations ▲ 40 million KRW for shared rest facilities. However, employers are required to bear 20% of the subsidy standard.
Gyeonggi Province will significantly strengthen support for small-scale workplaces with fewer than 20 employees, which are exempt from fines under the Industrial Safety and Health Act.
Eligible workplaces can receive support for costs necessary for installing or improving rest facilities for on-site workers, including new rest rooms, facility improvements, and purchasing heating and cooling equipment.
The project will be carried out from January to March according to the schedule of each city and county, and the scale of support and application periods may vary by city and county.
Kim Jeong-il, Director of the Labor Policy Division of Gyeonggi Province, stated, "On-site workers must be able to spend their rest time comfortably and pleasantly to promote their health and prevent industrial accidents. We will continue to strive to improve the working environment and awareness of rest rights for on-site workers."
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