Preventing the "Second Lee Seon-ho"... Safety Management Applied to All Port Entrants

Government Joint 'Special Safety Measures for Port Worksites' Announced
Unified Safety Management Responsibility for Stevedoring Operators
Participation of Labor Inspectors with Judicial Police Authority
Formation of Port Safety Council, etc.

The Pyeongtaek Port dock where Lee Seon-ho passed away. (Image source=Yonhap News)

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Following a series of fatal accidents involving port workers, including the death of the late Lee Seon-ho in a container accident at Pyeongtaek Port, the government has stepped up efforts to strengthen port safety management. The responsibility for port safety management will be unified under stevedoring operators. Going forward, stevedoring operators will be responsible for establishing safety management plans for all port entrants. The port safety council, which previously had no enforcement power, will be upgraded to a permanent council including labor inspectors with judicial police authority.

On the 5th, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, together with the Ministry of Employment and Labor, announced the establishment of a "Special Safety Measures for Port Workplaces" with these details.

The key point is that at individual port workplaces operated by stevedoring operators, stevedoring companies must establish safety management plans covering not only their own employees but all port entrants, and obtain approval from the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and other management authorities. Responsibility and authority for safety management during stevedoring procedures will be concentrated on the stevedoring companies. To this end, the contract structure centered on shipping companies will be reorganized into a comprehensive contract structure centered on stevedoring companies. By contracting simultaneously with shipping companies, port-related businesses, and others, stevedoring companies will bear the responsibility and authority for safety management.

The government plans to amend the Port Transportation Business Act in the first half of next year to establish new business categories providing essential port services such as cargo securing, container repair, and inspection.

The "Port Stevedoring Work Safety Standards," enacted in 1990 and unchanged for 32 years, will also be revised. Regarding mixed work sites where various complex equipment and workers operate together, "restricted access areas" will be expanded to include not only existing fall hazard zones but also unmanned crane operation areas. The scope of protection from contact with stevedoring transport machinery will be extended to include workers from other companies and passersby, in addition to affiliated workers.

The number of safety managers appointed at workplaces with fewer than 1,000 workers will be increased from one to two. For large stevedoring equipment such as cranes, mandatory detailed safety inspections will be required if the equipment is over 20 years old, and outdated equipment will be discarded based on inspection results. Separate usage limits will also be established for major parts of stevedoring equipment.

At port stevedoring sites, standard safety manuals reflecting the characteristics of each pier and cargo type will be created and distributed for immediate use on site. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Ministry of Employment and Labor will establish a permanent inspection and supervision system and strengthen management and oversight of work conditions through surprise inspections.

Port-specific safety councils will be elevated to legal permanent councils including labor inspectors with judicial police authority and port worker organizations. Twice a year, the port safety councils will conduct joint inspections on port safety.

Within this month, the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries will introduce a Port Safety Officer system dedicated to preventing port accidents. These officers will approve and continuously monitor the implementation of safety management plans for each port workplace. At least one Port Safety Officer will be assigned to each of the 11 regional maritime offices. Additional officers will be deployed at major ports with high cargo volumes and many workplaces, such as Busan Port, Incheon Port, Yeosu Gwangyang Port, and Ulsan Port.

A Port Workforce Safety Division will also be newly established within the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. It will be responsible for setting port safety policies and supporting safety equipment. Containers will be regularly inspected for safety, and those deemed defective will be removed from service. A reward system will be introduced to encourage reporting of defective containers.

A registration system will be introduced for container safety inspection operators, and if inspection deficiencies are detected, measures such as suspension or cancellation of business licenses will be taken. In particular, regarding the open-type containers involved in Lee’s accident, key inspection items will include checking for missing or malfunctioning shock absorbers and restricting worker access around such containers. Handling methods will be closely supervised, and if issues are not resolved during on-site guidance, work stoppage measures will be enforced.

All port entrants will be required to wear safety equipment, and speed limits will be imposed on heavy equipment such as cargo trucks and forklifts within ports. The government plans to support budgets for essential safety equipment, such as speed limit devices, for small-scale heavy equipment companies through a comprehensive port survey.

The government plans to invest a total of 5 billion KRW in these measures by next year.

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