Next Month, COVID-19 Inspections at About 2,000 Workplaces Employing Fewer Than 5 Foreign Workers

On the 17th, health authorities conducted comprehensive testing of workers at Jingwan Industrial Complex in Namyangju-si, Gyeonggi Province, in front of a company where a COVID-19 cluster infection occurred. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The government, which conducted a full inspection of COVID-19 in more than 11,000 workplaces employing five or more foreign workers throughout this month, will next month begin inspections of about 2,000 workplaces employing fewer than five workers.

On the 26th, Lee Jae-gap, Minister of Employment and Labor, visited Woojin Plastic in Namyangju, Gyeonggi Province, where COVID-19 had spread among foreign workers, to check the quarantine situation and announced this plan. Regarding this, Minister Lee said, "Since infections continue in both large and small workplaces, we plan to continue quarantine inspections of vulnerable workplaces."

Earlier, on the 2nd, the Ministry of Employment and Labor announced at a crisis response task force (TF) meeting chaired by Minister Lee that it would implement measures to strengthen quarantine management at workplaces employing foreign workers. Starting from the 4th, the ministry, together with the Ministry of Justice, began inspections of 11,918 workplaces. For 357 workplaces with inadequate quarantine measures, local governments were notified to impose fines and conduct COVID-19 testing.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor is expanding quarantine inspections to workplaces with fewer than five employees, guiding self-inspections at 23,000 workplaces nationwide. Next month, on-site inspections will be conducted at about 2,000 vulnerable workplaces. Through this, they plan to thoroughly manage to prevent the recurrence of cluster infections. Inspections are conducted by checking continuous mask-wearing during work, installation of partitions on shared dining tables, securing distance between beds, and restricting movement between dormitory rooms.

Minister Lee said, "The quarantine inspections contributed to preventing further cluster infections at workplaces employing foreign workers," and added, "Recently, cluster infections occurred at large shipbuilding companies, so I have instructed that labor inspectors must check quarantine conditions during all workplace visits and inspections."

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