Who is An Kyung-duk, Minister of Employment and Labor? Known for Thorough On-site Inspections

"Labor Policy Directly Linked to Workers' Lives"…Establishing On-Site Inspection Day for Surprise Checks

Minister of Employment and Labor An Kyung-duk being interviewed by Asia Economy at the Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office on the 11th./Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] An Kyung-duk, Minister of Employment and Labor, is known for thoroughly inspecting workplaces. He believes labor policies are directly linked to workers' lives, so he is often regarded as someone who does not tolerate mistakes even in minor details. For this reason, since his inauguration on May 7, he has visited industrial sites multiple times, including unannounced inspections, to directly check the preparedness of each workplace against industrial accident risks.

It was also Minister An who established the "Field Inspection Day" just one day after the Industrial Safety and Health Headquarters was launched on July 13 by the Ministry of Employment and Labor. Every two weeks, about 1,800 personnel from regional labor offices and the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency are deployed to conduct nationwide comprehensive inspections of industrial sites.

He emphasized the importance of unannounced inspections to increase the efficiency of inspections. He stated, "It is better not to go at all than to conduct a formal inspection with prior notice just to take photos."

Minister An recently shared an example of an unannounced visit to a small construction site in Seoul. He said, "When I arrived at the construction site, it was so poorly managed that it was difficult to find a place to step," adding, "If I had given prior notice, I would not have seen the raw reality of the site."

He particularly expressed that the Serious Accident Punishment Act is even more necessary through unannounced inspections. He stressed, "The golden time to reduce industrial accidents is from the second half of this year until early next year when the law will be enforced." Since business owners have significant concerns about the Serious Accident Punishment Act, it is expected to have a strong effect on preventing industrial accidents.

He also anticipated visible results. Minister An said, "According to internal statistics, fatal accidents slightly increased from May to June right after I took office, but the trend has been decreasing since July," and added, "I expect these results to appear in the first half of next year."

◇Career

▲ Born in 1963 ▲ Chuncheon High School, Gangwon ▲ Department of Political Science and Diplomacy, Hankuk University of Foreign Studies ▲ 33rd Administrative Examination ▲ Director of Seoul Regional Employment and Labor Office, Ministry of Employment and Labor ▲ Director of Labor Policy Bureau, Ministry of Employment and Labor ▲ Director of Planning and Coordination Bureau, Ministry of Employment and Labor ▲ Standing Member of the Economic, Social and Labor Council

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