Pohang City Holds 'Safety and Health Guardian' Launch Ceremony... Proactive Response to Industrial Site Hazards

Establishing an Industrial Accident Prevention System...
Expansion to 12 Safety and Health Guardians
On-site Guidance and Inspections at Industrial Sites
to Improve Working Conditions in Public and Private Sectors

Pohang City held the 'Pohang City Safety and Health Guardians Launch Ceremony' on the 12th at the city hall's main conference room to create safe workplaces in both the public and private sectors within the region.

Pohang City held the "Pohang City Safety and Health Keeper Launch Ceremony" on the 12th at the city hall's main conference room. Photo by Pohang City

The Safety and Health Guardians are composed of private experts with industrial safety certifications and extensive field experience. Their role is to visit industrial sites in Pohang City to provide guidance and inspections aimed at preventing industrial accidents and creating safe workplaces for workers.

The city launched the Safety and Health Guardians program in 2023 with three experts and expanded the number to five last year.

This year, to further strengthen the industrial accident prevention system, the number of Safety and Health Guardians has been increased to twelve, and the city plans to continue expanding the program in the future.

To enhance the effectiveness of the Safety and Health Guardians' activities, from this year, they will operate in teams of two, expanding their scope of activity not only to Pohang City-commissioned construction and project sites but also to private workplaces.

The Safety and Health Guardians visit sites to check for compliance with the Industrial Safety and Health Act, inspect work environments and the installation of safety facilities, and verify adherence to safety regulations.

If any violations of safety standards are found, they will recommend voluntary improvements and guide the removal of risk factors in advance.

In addition, they will establish cooperative systems with business owners at private workplaces to spread a culture of safety and will also conduct education and publicity activities to strengthen workers' safety awareness.

The city plans to expand the Safety and Health Guardians program and actively utilize AI-based advanced safety management systems to protect citizens' safety through continuous industrial accident prevention activities and the creation of safe working environments.

Pohang City Deputy Mayor Jang Sangkil emphasized, "The most important thing at industrial sites is the safety of workers," and requested, "I hope you do your best to prevent industrial accidents and make Pohang even safer through the activities of the Safety and Health Guardians."

Pohang City is the first local government in the country to establish an AI-based 'Integrated Safety and Health Management System' for the prevention of serious accidents.

This system will be operated for various projects conducted by Pohang City, as well as for contracted, outsourced, and commissioned projects and construction sites. It will check legal obligations for each workplace and analyze data-based risk factors to enable proactive responses.

Furthermore, with real-time monitoring, the city plans to strengthen the fulfillment of safety and health obligations and establish a leading model for industrial accident prevention.