"Need to Improve Construction Industry Image"…89% of Workers and General Public Agree

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Kim] An analysis has emerged that improving corporate ethics is urgently needed to build a positive image of the construction industry.

According to a survey conducted by the Korea Construction Industry Research Institute in the report 'Current Status and Improvement Measures of the Construction Industry Image,' 89.0% of all respondents answered 'necessary' to the question of whether the image of the construction industry needs improvement. When asked why they felt the need to improve the image of the construction industry, the top reason was 'because the construction industry is perceived as unethical due to corruption and bribery,' followed by 'because the construction industry is perceived as a 3D industry,' and thirdly, 'because work-life balance seems unattainable when employed in construction.'

As a result of investigating the current image of the construction industry, factors such as 'poor construction,' 'safety accidents and disasters,' 'complaints,' 'corruption and bribery,' 'collusion,' 'poor management,' 'environmental destruction,' 'real estate speculation,' 'morality,' 'welfare benefits,' 'working hours,' 'work safety,' 'work environment (3D industry),' and 'employment structure (job insecurity)' were identified as important factors for future image improvement or areas with low current satisfaction. In particular, the general public showed strong negative perceptions regarding corporate ethics-related issues such as 'corruption and bribery,' 'collusion,' 'poor management,' and 'environmental destruction.'

Although everyone agreed on the necessity of improving the construction industry's image, activities aimed at this were mainly focused on social contribution activities, resulting in minimal image improvement effects. In other words, activities addressing the actual areas needing improvement are not being carried out, and efforts mostly end as one-time events targeting vulnerable groups.

Researcher Eunjeong Choi of the Korea Construction Industry Research Institute argued, "Rather than individual organizations sporadically focusing on social contribution activities as is currently the case, it is necessary for the public and private sectors to form a consultative body, set common goals, select necessary projects, and promote them through role sharing."

Japan has been conducting continuous activities for over 30 years to improve the image of the construction industry. Recently, under the goal of 'rebranding' the construction industry, both public and private sectors have come together to set common goals and carry out projects. Researcher Choi stated, "Japan’s systematic activities to improve the construction industry’s image provide implications for Korea, where each organization is currently independently promoting image improvement projects." She added, "It is necessary to move beyond individual organizations simply focusing on social contribution activities and establish a consultative body for public-private cooperation to systematically plan and devise measures that can positively impact the construction industry."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.