Fire Industry Mutual Aid Association Signs Agreement to Support Member Companies' Compliance with Serious Accident Punishment Act

The Fire Industry Mutual Aid Association (Chairman Ok Dong-seok) announced on the 13th that it has signed an agreement with the Korea Technology Management Council (CEO Ju Seong-jong, hereinafter KTMC) to establish a safety and health management system and secure safety and health management experts for member companies nationwide through the ISO 45001 International Auditor Training Course.

This agreement aims to organically cooperate in securing safety and health management experts and establishing safety and health management systems for small and medium-sized member companies, which face unfavorable conditions, following the expansion of the Serious Accident Punishment Act to all workplaces with five or more employees as of January 27.

The Fire Industry Mutual Aid Association, in collaboration with KTMC and its affiliated institution, the Korea Technology Management Institute, will provide training courses for safety and health management experts among employees of member companies nationwide. Participants will obtain ISO 45001 international auditor qualifications and be encouraged to stay long-term, thereby serving as internal auditors for safety and health management within member companies. The theoretical part of the training will be conducted online, while workshops and the certification exam will be held offline over two days. The Mutual Aid Association will cover 50% of the tuition fees, so member companies will only bear half the cost, 500,000 KRW, significantly reducing expenses related to hiring and operating safety and health management professionals.

Furthermore, the acquisition of ISO 45001 certification, an institutional certification for member companies, will be actively supported by minimizing costs through remote job competency training for current employees, consulting, and free certification acquisition fees, thereby reducing expenses associated with obtaining ISO safety and health management certification.

Accordingly, member companies of the Fire Industry Mutual Aid Association will secure safety and health management personnel at minimal cost, establish a safety and health management system compliant with international standards, obtain ISO 45001 certification, and conduct ESG-related remote education. This aligns with the Ministry of Employment and Labor’s Serious Accident Punishment Act guideline, “Following the Serious Accident Punishment Act for Small and Medium Enterprises,” which states that small and medium-sized enterprise managers and business owners can secure exemption clauses under the Serious Accident Punishment Act.

(For reference, the Ministry of Employment and Labor’s guideline appendix explains, “If the management is fulfilling their obligations regarding safety and health assurance, they will not be punished even if a serious accident occurs.”)

The Korea Technology Management Institute, a signatory institution, has agreed to provide free or minimal-cost training for safety and health professionals and ISO certification acquisition for small and medium-sized member companies. It will cooperate to ensure that member companies of the Fire Industry Mutual Aid Association meet exemption requirements for safety and health obligations under the Serious Accident Punishment Act and establish a foundation to focus on management with peace of mind.

Meanwhile, Chairman Ok Dong-seok of the Fire Industry Mutual Aid Association expressed, “Through this agreement, we expect to help small and medium-sized member companies struggling with the application of the Serious Accident Punishment Act to fulfill their safety and health obligations in a tailored manner, secure exemption requirements for management responsibility, establish a safety and health system, and practice ESG management.”