[Exclusive] "The Roads Were Built, But They Never Made It Home"... KEC Holds Annual Memorials as 36 Workers Die in Six Years

The Price of Fast and Cheap Roads: Public Projects More Dangerous Than Private Ones
36 Industrial Accident Deaths in 6 Years, Already 6 This Year
Cheongyongcheon Bridge Disaster Clearly States "KEC Also Responsible"
Low-Bid Projects With 80

#. Korea Expressway Corporation (KEC) holds a memorial service every year for the deceased workers of the Gyeongbu Expressway. The ceremony commemorates the 77 workers who lost their lives during the construction of the Gyeongbu Expressway. Over a period of two years and five months, a cumulative total of 9 million people worked on the project, during which these fatalities occurred. This year, the memorial service was again attended by the management, including Vice President Lee Sangjae. Vice President Lee stated, "We will strive to create better expressways and lead the future of road transportation by learning from their noble sacrifices." However, the painful memories of the industrialization era did not end there.

The scene of the Cheongyongcheon Bridge accident on the Anseong~Sejong Expressway last February, which resulted in four fatalities. Gyeonggi Province.

Over the past six years, KEC has recorded the highest number of occupational fatalities among both public and private organizations in Korea, making it the "company with the most industrial accidents." Despite the ongoing deaths of workers during road construction every year, government penalties remain lenient, and even the relevant laws are insufficient, making it difficult to hold those responsible accountable. Recently, President Lee Jaemyung defined occupational fatalities as "murder by willful negligence," prompting calls to bring KEC, which has remained hidden in the blind spot of industrial accident punishment, into the spotlight.

Not KEPCO or Hyundai Engineering & Construction... KEC Ranks First in Industrial Accidents With 36 Deaths

According to the Public Institution Management Information Disclosure System (ALIO), the Korea Infrastructure Safety and Technology Corporation, and coverage of major public enterprises and the top 10 construction companies, KEC had the highest number of fatalities among public enterprises over the past five years, with 36 deaths. Korea Electric Power Corporation (33 deaths), Korea Land and Housing Corporation (30), KORAIL (12), Korea Rural Community Corporation (12), and National Railroad Authority (11) followed.

Even compared to private construction companies, the numbers are overwhelming. Among the top 10 construction companies by construction capability, Hyundai Engineering & Construction had the highest number of fatalities, with 20 deaths during the same period. Hyundai Engineering and Lotte Construction each had 15, Daewoo Engineering & Construction had 14, and DL E&C had 13. POSCO E&C, which has faced intense scrutiny this year due to four fatal accidents, recorded nine deaths, which is actually on the lower end among large companies.

At KEC-commissioned sites, there were eight fatalities in 2020, nine in 2021, three in 2022, six in 2023, and four last year. The accidents have not stopped this year. Six people have died in three fatal accidents so far: four in the Cheongyongcheon Bridge accident on the Anseong~Sejong Expressway in February, one in the Uiryeong Interchange accident on the Hamyang~Changnyeong Expressway in July, and one in the Andong Central Expressway accident in August. KEC had set its target for occupational fatalities this year at "six," but has already reached that number.

'Four Dead' Cheongyongcheon Bridge Accident: "The Ordering Agency (KEC) Also Contributed to the Cause"

The Cheongyongcheon Bridge accident on the Anseong~Sejong Expressway, which claimed the lives of four workers, is a representative case that starkly reveals the reality at KEC. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport's Construction Accident Investigation Committee, the subcontractor removed 76 out of 120 screw jacks without reporting it, and the main contractor (Hyundai Engineering) failed to detect this. KEC, citing its own manual, shifted full inspection responsibility to the main contractor and was essentially negligent. The unauthorized removal of screw jacks ultimately led to the bridge collapse and the deaths of four workers.

The subcontractor removed the screw jacks for "work convenience," committing an illegal act to speed up the process. Structural issues such as "low-bid awards" and "tight deadlines" at public project sites appear to have influenced this. According to the Korea Infrastructure Safety and Technology Corporation, Hyundai Engineering won the contract for this site at a bid rate below 80% (between 75% and 79%). The bid rate is the ratio of the winning bid amount to the standard price set by the ordering agency. The lower the bid rate, the smaller the contractor's margin, leading to tighter budgets and more sensitivity to deadlines. At low-bid sites, safety management is deprioritized, resulting in shoddy construction. In fact, last year's construction site accident statistics from the Korea Infrastructure Safety and Technology Corporation show that there were 74 fatal accidents in public projects with a bid rate below 90%, more than double the number in the private sector (38 cases).

At 88% of KEC Sites, No Mandatory Safety Manager Assignment

Ham Jinkyu, President of Korea Expressway Corporation, attending and responding at the 2023 National Assembly audit. Photo by Yonhap News.

Recently, occupational fatalities have drawn heightened attention, with the president labeling them as "murder by willful negligence." These days, even a single fatal accident at a major construction company is followed by "search and seizure" and "sanctions." For example, this month alone, both POSCO E&C and DL Construction were raided. Stronger penalties are expected.

In this context, there are concerns that KEC, with the highest number of fatalities, remains in a blind spot for punishment. The Industrial Safety and Health Act is cited as a law that could be used for penalties. However, under this law, ordering agencies are not held directly responsible for safety management if they are not leading the construction work. The Serious Accidents Punishment Act provides that if an ordering agency neglects safety measures resulting in a serious accident, the management can be punished. However, there have been no actual cases of this being applied. As a result, in the Cheongyongcheon Bridge accident, the Ministry of Land's committee only ordered KEC to revise its manual, without announcing any administrative sanctions.

Because it is excluded from punishment, KEC appears to have become desensitized to fatal accidents. In its annual safety management responsibility report, KEC boasted of its safety management achievements, stating, "Last year, there were four occupational fatalities, a 33% decrease from the previous year (six deaths)."

KEC has also acknowledged the limits of its manpower and management. It stated that 88% of its sites are small-scale projects under 5 billion won, with no mandatory safety manager assignment, and admitted, "There are limitations as personnel and budgets are allocated mainly for profitability." It also noted, "Because there are so many small-scale worksites, management is difficult." As of last year, KEC managed approximately 1,713 sites, about six times the average for other social overhead capital (SOC) public enterprises (283 sites).

"Ordering Agencies Must Also Take Proper Responsibility"... Under Discussion in the National Assembly

As occupational accidents continue at public enterprises, calls are growing to strengthen the responsibility and obligations of ordering agencies. The National Assembly is already discussing improvements, most notably the "Special Act on Construction Safety."

This law codifies the responsibility and punishment of ordering agencies, which were previously scattered across various laws. In addition to the obligations and penalties for contractors, it specifies the ordering agency's duty to guarantee appropriate construction costs and schedules, requires them to cover half the disaster insurance costs, and stipulates up to seven years in prison or a fine of up to 100 million won if an ordering agency's negligence in safety management leads to death.

Assemblyman Moon Jinseok of the Democratic Party of Korea, who sponsored the bill, explained, "This bill assigns safety management responsibility commensurate with the authority of each participant in construction projects," adding, "The aim is to foster the perception that the cost of accident losses exceeds that of prevention, thereby creating a safer work environment and reducing the risk of construction accidents."