"Apartment Construction Fall Death"... Daewoo E&C Fined for 'Violation of Industrial Safety and Health Act'

Supreme Court, Seocho-gu, Seoul. Photo by Mun Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] Daewoo E&C has been fined by the Supreme Court in connection with an accident in which two workers fell during construction. The site manager received a suspended prison sentence.

On the 2nd, the Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Lee Dongwon) announced that it upheld the original ruling sentencing Daewoo E&C to a fine of 10 million KRW and site manager Mr. A to 10 months in prison with a 2-year suspension for violating the Industrial Safety and Health Act and other charges.

Previously, workers Mr. B and Mr. C fell from a height of 7.7 meters while working on an apartment construction site in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, in March 2019. Mr. B died from the accident, and Mr. C sustained injuries requiring 14 weeks of medical treatment. The prosecution charged Daewoo E&C, the primary contractor, and site manager Mr. A with failing to fulfill safety obligations under the Industrial Safety and Health Act, including not preparing a work plan with safety measures.

In court, Daewoo E&C and Mr. A argued that they only had subcontract and product supply contracts with the subcontractor and were not in a direct contracting relationship, thus denying responsibility under the Industrial Safety and Health Act for the accident.

The first trial court stated, "This was a typical accident caused by safety negligence, and the accident could have been prevented if the defendants had followed basic safety guidelines," sentencing Daewoo E&C to a fine of 10 million KRW and Mr. A to 10 months in prison with a 2-year suspension. The court judged that the contract between Daewoo E&C and the subcontractor combined product supply and installation work.

The appellate court reduced Mr. A's sentence to 10 months in prison with a 2-year suspension, considering his admission of guilt and remorse. The Supreme Court also agreed with this judgment and dismissed all appeals.

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