Joint Investigation of Late Lee Seonho's Accident Site and 5 Major Ports... Labor Union Pressures Enforcement Decree of Serious Accident Punishment Act

Ministry of Employment, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Gyeonggi-do, Police, etc... Joint Supervision of 5 Major Ports
Enforcement Decree of Serious Accident Punishment Act to be Announced by Early Next Month at the Latest
Government-Labor Communication Ongoing, but Labor Sector Pressures "Do Not Lower the Level"
Korean Confederation of Trade Unions: "Enforcement Decree of Serious Accident Punishment Act Should Rather Expand to Workplaces with 5 or Fewer Employees"

A photo of Lee Jae-hoon, the father of the late Lee Seon-ho, a young worker in his 20s who died in an accident while working at Pyeongtaek Port, speaking at a memorial cultural event held in front of the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office in Jung-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 13th. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] A joint government and local government task force began operations on the 14th to investigate the truth behind the death of young worker the late Lee Seon-ho at Pyeongtaek Port. They decided to conduct a joint investigation targeting workplaces affiliated with Dongbang, the primary contractor involved in the accident, and the five major ports nationwide. Labor groups pressured that the government-labor consultation on the Enforcement Decree of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, to be announced by early next month at the latest, should not be relaxed compared to the existing law’s stance. They argued that the scope should rather be expanded to include workplaces with 'five or fewer' employees.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor held the first meeting of the 'Joint Task Force (TF) on the Pyeongtaek Port Death Accident' via video conference yesterday, chaired by Vice Minister Park Hwajin. The TF includes the Ministry of Employment and Labor, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, Gyeonggi Province, Pyeongtaek City, the National Police Agency, and the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency. They plan to discuss accident response, investigation, cause analysis, and institutional improvement measures. When an industrial accident occurs, the Ministry of Employment and Labor and the police conduct a 'two-track' investigation.

Immediately after Lee’s death on the 26th and 27th of last month, the Ministry of Employment and Labor inspected the accident site and found that the overall safety management system at the site was inadequate. Dongbang, the primary contractor, failed to properly fulfill the employer’s safety and health obligations, such as preparing work plans. After receiving a work suspension order from the Ministry of Employment and Labor immediately following the accident, the company applied to lift the suspension on the 4th of this month, just 12 days after the accident, without properly establishing safety measures. The Ministry did not approve this due to insufficient safety measures.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor, Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, and Gyeonggi Province plan to conduct joint inspections from the 17th to the 28th targeting Pyeongtaek Port and the five major ports nationwide, as well as workplaces affiliated with Dongbang. If violations are found, judicial actions will be taken. Guidelines to ensure the safety of container operations that caused Lee’s death will also be created and distributed. The guidelines include provisions such as requiring work to be conducted under the direction of a work supervisor. At the time of the accident, Lee was working without being provided protective gear such as a safety helmet, and no safety manager or signalman was assigned at the site.

As the government accelerates the investigation into Lee’s accident, labor groups raised their voices against accepting management’s demands to exclude CEOs from punishment in the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, which will be enforced in January next year. The Serious Accidents Punishment Act stipulates that if a serious accident such as a worker’s death occurs and it is found that the company’s safety management system was inadequate, the employer and management responsible can also be punished.

The Federation of Korean Trade Unions issued a statement on the 11th titled “Will you continue to demand relaxation of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act despite ongoing worker deaths?” saying, “Employer organizations are trying to narrow the definition of management responsibility to exclude CEOs from punishment and limit the scope of serious accidents to be narrower than those under the Industrial Safety and Health Act. If revisions are to be discussed, (rather) the application of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act should be fully expanded to workplaces with five or fewer employees.”

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