Fair Trade Commission Launches Ex Officio Investigation into 'Unfair Cost Shifting of Industrial Accident-Related Expenses' in Manufacturing Following Construction Industry

[Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] The Fair Trade Commission announced that it will expand its on-site investigation of unfair subcontracting practices involving the improper transfer of industrial accident-related costs from the construction sector (25 companies) in May to the manufacturing sector (18 companies) starting from the 7th.

With the recent increase in social interest in industrial accidents, related costs have risen, and there is a high likelihood that these costs will be passed on to subcontractors.

Accordingly, since the 3rd of last month, the Fair Trade Commission has been conducting a focused inspection on 25 construction companies regarding the improper transfer of industrial accident costs and safety management expenses, which should be borne by themselves, to subcontractors.

The Fair Trade Commission noted that serious accidents continue to occur in the manufacturing sector as well, raising concerns that related costs might be transferred to in-house subcontractors, and thus decided to promptly expand the investigation to the manufacturing sector.

The investigation targets a total of 18 companies, including those with frequent serious accidents and those suspected of transferring safety management costs based on a written survey. The investigation will focus on cases where the original contractor improperly transferred industrial accident costs (such as medical expenses, compensation, settlement fees) and safety management costs to subcontractors through unfair special agreements, as well as cases where subcontract payments were reduced by the amount spent on safety measures.

The Fair Trade Commission plans to take strict measures, including imposing fines promptly on companies found violating regulations during this investigation, and will also compile violation case materials to strengthen business promotion and education, thereby conducting activities to prevent legal violations.

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