No Health Checkups or Breaks... Poor Night Shift Workplaces Exposed

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Workplaces that failed to provide special health examinations or sufficient rest to night shift workers have been caught by the government.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced on the 24th the results of labor inspections and working environment surveys conducted on 51 workplaces in three industries with a high amount of night work (working from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. the next day): wholesale (distribution), transportation and warehousing, and manufacturing. Wholesale and transportation/warehousing are representative industries where workloads increased due to the spread of COVID-19. Among manufacturing workplaces, inspections were conducted on those with regular night shifts.

Among the 51 workplaces, 17 were found to have failed to properly conduct the special health examinations required for workers performing night work for a certain period of time. The total fines imposed on these workplaces amounted to 51 million KRW. In particular, many cases of failing to conduct special health examinations for daily workers were reported in wholesale and transportation/warehousing sectors operating logistics centers.

There were also workplaces that did not provide rest facilities or allow rest time. Three workplaces were ordered to correct the situation for not installing rest facilities. Fifteen workplaces were found to have failed to provide safety and health education to workers, resulting in a total fine of 49 million KRW. Four workplaces were caught not complying with workers' break times, and nine workplaces were found to have failed to pay some overtime and holiday work allowances to workers.

According to a survey conducted by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on 8,058 night shift workers, 64.8% worked in shifts, and 35.2% were dedicated night shift workers. 78.8% responded that rest facilities were sufficiently provided, while 21.2% said they were insufficient. The average daily night work hours were less than 8 hours for 61.5% and 8 hours or more for 38.5%. Workers mainly reported working night shifts for "economic reasons such as allowances" (55.8%).

Park Hwajin, Vice Minister of Employment and Labor, said, "Since night work has a significant impact on workers' health, companies need to pay special attention and effort," adding, "The government will continue to inspect workplaces to improve the working environment and protect the health rights of night shift workers."

The Ministry of Employment and Labor plans to establish detailed standards as the installation of rest facilities in workplaces will be mandatory from August next year due to the revision of the Industrial Safety and Health Act.

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