Expansion of Safety Budgets and Education
Strengthening Communication and On-site Inspections
Joint Efforts with Partner Companies
The construction industry has launched comprehensive measures to reduce safety accidents as the new year begins. Major construction companies are implementing various initiatives such as strengthening safety management systems, expanding education, and improving communication structures with the goal of achieving 'Zero Major Accidents.' This is interpreted as an effort to prioritize safety as the top management agenda amid the rising trend of industrial accidents.
According to the construction industry on the 29th, Park Hyun-cheol, Vice Chairman and CEO of Lotte Construction, recently visited a complex facility construction site in Seocho-gu, Seoul to inspect safety conditions and communicate with employees. Since his appointment, he has been visiting sites nationwide every month to directly check safety status.
At an earlier management strategy meeting this year, Vice Chairman Park emphasized the principle of "No work if it is not safe" and mentioned the necessity of eradicating risk factors. At this meeting, Lotte Construction set three core strategies: strengthening execution, advancing the safety management system, and improving the level of members.
Park Hyun-chul, Vice Chairman and CEO of Lotte Construction, is inspecting the construction site of a complex facility in Seocho-gu, Seoul, on the 22nd. Photo by Lotte Construction
Daewoo Construction plans to operate a safety and health communication meeting attended by the CEO and Chief Safety Officer (CSO) to strengthen safety and health communication. The meeting will review the implementation status of the self-established 'Safety Innovation Policy' and check safety and health issues. The safety budget has also been expanded. In addition to the legally mandated industrial safety and health management expenses, additional budgets have been allocated, and safety budget standards for small-scale sites under 80 billion KRW have been improved. Kim Bo-hyun, CEO of Daewoo Construction who took office in December last year, stated in his New Year's address this year, "Safety is the top priority of management policy," and urged, "Manage the sites with the mindset of protecting your own family."
DL E&C and its subsidiary DL Construction will jointly operate the 'DL Safety and Health Council' from this year to strengthen safety management. Lee Gil-po, Head of Safety and Health Management at DL E&C (CSO), and Lim Sung-hoon, CSO of DL Construction, will co-chair the council and hold regular meetings. The safety and health goal for both companies this year is 'Zero Major Accidents.'
HDC Hyundai Development Company is focusing on expanding safety education. Recently, about 1,400 people including executives, site managers, safety managers, and representatives of partner companies participated in the 'Safety and Health System and Disaster Prevention Specialization Course' held at Bloomvista Hotel & Conference in Yangpyeong-gun, Gyeonggi Province. From this year, the company added an in-house professional instructor training course and cooperative education for partner companies. The education target, which was previously limited to partner company representatives and safety personnel, has been expanded to include the Safety and Quality Committee (about 50 partner company representatives), head office personnel, and foreign workers.
Kim Won-cheol, CEO of Seohui Construction (fourth from the right in the front row), is taking a commemorative photo with executives and employees on the 6th at Seohui Construction headquarters in Seocho-gu, Seoul, reaffirming their commitment to achieving 'Zero Major Accidents.' Photo by Seohui Construction
Seohui Construction held a 'Zero Major Accident Safety Practice Resolution Rally' at its headquarters in Seocho-gu, Seoul, with CEO Kim Won-cheol and site managers nationwide attending to mark the new year. At this event, CEO Kim emphasized, "Seohui Construction will make 2025 the inaugural year of zero major accidents and spare no effort to prevent major accidents."
Dongbu Construction introduced a new 'Safety Management Supervisor' system. This measure aims to clarify site safety management responsibilities by integrating the roles of dispersed safety managers. The Jungheung Group conducted safety management system strengthening training for safety department team leaders of Jungheung Construction and Jungheung Civil Engineering, as well as representatives of 103 partner companies. Baek Seung-kwon, CEO of Jungheung Construction, emphasized the effective operation of the safety and health system and urged managers to make efforts.
BS Hanyang completed last year without any major accidents. This year, it plans to further strengthen its safety organization and introduce safety evaluation and management systems as well as smart safety equipment. About 120 executives and employees in the construction division prayed for 'two consecutive years without accidents' on the 3rd of this year at the summit of Manisan in Ganghwa-gun, Incheon.
The construction industry is one of the sectors where industrial accidents frequently occur. According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the cumulative number of fatal accidents subject to accident investigation in the third quarter of last year was 443. Among them, 203, accounting for 45.8%, occurred in the construction industry, representing nearly half of industrial accident fatalities.
Industrial accidents in large construction companies have been increasing every year. According to data received by Park Yong-gap, a member of the National Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee from the Democratic Party, from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport in September last year on the 'Industrial Accident Status of the Top 20 Construction Companies by Construction Capability Evaluation in the Last 3 Years,' the number of accident victims increased from 1,458 in 2021 to 1,631 in 2022, and 2,194 in 2023, rising by more than 50% in two years. The first half of last year recorded 929 victims.
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