POSCO Tightens Discipline After Consecutive Accidents... Team Leaders Shift from Biweekly 4-Day Workweek to 5-Day Workweek

Following a series of accidents at POSCO Pohang Steelworks, POSCO Group has taken steps to enforce work discipline up to middle management levels.

At around 4:20 a.m. on the 10th, a report of a large fire was received at POSCO Pohang Steelworks in Jecheol-dong, Nam-gu, Pohang-si, Gyeongbuk, and the fire department is currently working to extinguish it. Yonhap News

According to industry sources on the 1st, POSCO switched from a biweekly four-day workweek to a five-day workweek for middle managers at the team leader level starting late last month. Earlier this year, POSCO was the first in the steel industry to introduce a biweekly four-day workweek, but in June, citing a downturn in the steel market, it reverted to a five-day workweek even for executives. However, managers below the team leader level, such as section chiefs and regular employees, will maintain the biweekly four-day workweek.

This decision appears to be aimed at tightening discipline in response to the consecutive accidents. POSCO has formed an internal "Equipment Robustness Task Force (TF)" to conduct thorough inspections of equipment conditions. The TF plans to focus inspections on the Pohang, Gwangyang, and overseas steelworks sites to assess equipment status and develop short- and mid-to-long-term countermeasures.

Previously, on the 10th and 24th of last month, explosions and fire accidents occurred consecutively at POSCO Pohang Steelworks' 3-Pinex Plant. The first accident halted molten steel production and damaged equipment, followed by a second accident that caused further equipment damage.