Joo Ho-young Suggests Supplementing Serious Accident Punishment Act: "Will Identify Parts Not Suitable for the Field"

Joo Ho-young, floor leader, is attending the video floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 12th and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporters Lee Ji-eun and Lim Chun-han] Joo Ho-young, the floor leader of the People Power Party, hinted at amendments regarding the Serious Accidents Punishment Act (hereinafter referred to as the Serious Accidents Act), which was passed at the plenary session on the 8th, stating, "We will look for parts that do not fit the field." He claimed that the party's stance was not properly reflected due to the Democratic Party's unilateral legislation. The business community is also complaining about side effects and demanding improvements.

After the floor leaders' meeting held via video conference at the National Assembly on the morning of the 12th, Floor Leader Joo told reporters, when asked about the possibility of revising the Serious Accidents Act, "Since it was hastily made, there may be parts that do not fit various fields, so we intend to look for such parts," indicating a willingness to make amendments. Given that there is a one-year grace period until its enforcement in 2022, they plan to address any problematic side effects during that time.

He stated that the People Power Party's intentions were not properly reflected due to the Democratic Party's "legislative dictatorship." At the floor strategy meeting that day, he emphasized, "The Democratic Party's legislative rampage is causing all sorts of side effects, but there is still no proper recognition of the problems or reflection," and added, "Even now, they should stop this attitude, sincerely apologize if there are side effects or problems with the law, and work on amendments."

In an interview on YTN Radio's "Hwang Bo-seon's Start of a New Morning" that same morning, Floor Leader Joo also lamented, "The Democratic Party insisted on passing the law unconditionally by January 8, when the temporary session ends, so although we corrected many parts of the law, we could not do it entirely as we wished."

Economic organizations are also requesting supplementary legislation for the Serious Accidents Act. On the 11th, Sohn Kyung-shik, Chairman of the Korea Employers Federation; Kim Ki-moon, Chairman of the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business; and Kim Young-yoon, Chairman of the Korea Specialty Contractors Association, visited Floor Leader Joo and appealed to change the upper limit regulation on imprisonment for business owners, apply the Serious Accidents Act only when repeated accidents occur, and grant a minimum two-year grace period to small and medium enterprises with 50 or more employees.

However, since the bill has already been passed through bipartisan agreement, it is uncertain whether supplementary legislation will be effective. Jeong Ho-jin, chief spokesperson of the Justice Party, criticized, "The Serious Accidents Act was agreed upon and passed by the two major parties and submitted to the plenary session of the National Assembly," adding, "Although we were not unaware of the People Power Party's true intentions, their sudden transformation into representatives of the business community immediately after the law's enactment clearly reveals its inherent limitations."

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