"People Power Party Opposes, Unacceptable"... Bereaved Families Cry Out Over Serious Accident Act Excluding Fewer Than 5 People

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] “The People Power Party has opposed this. I ask the public to vote properly in the next election. Every year, around 400 people die in workplaces with fewer than five employees. They intend to keep letting these people die. How can this be tolerated?” (Kim Mi-sook, mother of the late Kim Yong-gyun)

On the 8th, the bereaved families of workers who lost their lives due to industrial accidents, including Kim Mi-sook, mother of the late Kim Yong-gyun, and Lee Yong-gwan, father of the late PD Lee Han-bit, cried out in front of the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee meeting room. This was because the ruling and opposition parties passed the Serious Accidents Punishment Act in the plenary session that day, excluding business owners of workplaces with fewer than five employees from punishment.

Kim Mi-sook, mother of the late Kim Yong-gyun, said, “The bereaved families can never accept this. How can the deaths of those people (in workplaces with fewer than five employees) be taken lightly, and only companies with ten or more employees be spared from punishment?” She added, “The People Power Party opposed it, so it did not pass. Citizens, what should we do about this? Shouldn’t we judge them?”

Lee Yong-gwan, father of the late PD Lee Han-bit, raised his voice, saying, “Why did they accept the national petition? We made tearful efforts to gather 100,000 signatures,” and asked, “Is this a National Assembly that serves the people?” Justice Party lawmaker Jang Hye-young choked up, saying, “The law passed by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee only discriminates against the people.”

The Serious Accidents Punishment Act stipulates that if a death occurs due to an industrial accident or incident, business owners or management responsible for inadequate safety measures shall be punished with imprisonment of one year or more or a fine of up to 1 billion KRW. Corporations or institutions may also be fined up to 5 billion KRW. The law also includes provisions for punitive damages up to five times the amount for business owners or corporations causing serious accidents. However, business owners of workplaces with fewer than five employees are excluded from punishment under industrial accident laws, and workplaces with fewer than 50 employees will be subject to the law after a three-year grace period, among other exceptions and deferrals.

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