Supreme Court Sentencing Commission Recommends Maximum 10 Years and 6 Months Imprisonment for Death by Violation of Safety and Health Duty

On July 13, last year, Kim Young-ran, Chairperson of the Sentencing Commission, attended and presided over the "103rd Plenary Meeting of the Sentencing Commission" held at the Supreme Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul. / 2020.07.13 Photo by Joint Press Corps

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] Amid the recent passage of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, which strengthens penalties for companies and executives in cases of serious accidents such as death, the Supreme Court has reinforced sentencing guidelines to allow for a maximum prison term of 10 years and 6 months when an employer violates safety and health obligations resulting in a worker's death.

According to the Supreme Court on the 12th, the Supreme Court Sentencing Commission (Chairperson Kim Young-ran) approved a revision of the sentencing guidelines for 'negligent injury or death and industrial safety and health crimes' at its 107th plenary session held via video conference the day before.

The Sentencing Commission raised the basic sentencing guidelines for crimes involving violation of safety and health obligations under the Industrial Safety and Health Act from the previous imprisonment range of 6 months to 1 year and 6 months to a new range of 1 year to 2 years and 6 months.

Furthermore, if special aggravating factors are present, the recommended sentence was increased to 2 to 5 years imprisonment, and if there are two or more special aggravating factors, the recommended sentence was raised to 2 to 7 years imprisonment. In cases involving multiple offenses or recidivism within 5 years, the maximum sentence can be up to 10 years and 6 months imprisonment.

In addition, the Sentencing Commission established and approved sentencing guidelines for the first time for 'residential intrusion crimes' and 'environmental crimes.' Specifically, environmental crimes were categorized into types such as ▲waste and construction waste crimes ▲air environment crimes ▲water environment crimes ▲marine environment crimes ▲livestock manure crimes, with sentencing ranges presented according to statutory penalties.

The Sentencing Commission plans to hold a public hearing on the sentencing guidelines on March 5, followed by a final approval at the plenary session on March 29.

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