KCCI "Punishment Level of Serious Accident Punishment Act is Excessive... Need to Establish Prevention-Centered Policy"

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] As the Serious Accidents Punishment Act is set to be enforced in January next year, a survey has revealed that South Korea has the highest level of penalties related to industrial safety among countries. Experts point out that to prevent serious accidents, industrial safety policies should focus on prevention rather than strong punishment.

On the 16th, the Korea Employers Federation (KEF) released a report titled "International Comparison and Implications of Employer Penalties Related to Industrial Safety." KEF explained that with the enforcement of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act scheduled for January 27 next year, the survey was conducted to compare the penalty levels of related laws in 12 major countries across Europe, Asia, and North America, aiming to explore effective and rational legislative improvements for preventing serious accidents.

According to KEF, when safety and health obligations are violated without resulting in fatalities, the penalty level in South Korea is imprisonment of up to 5 years or a fine of up to 50 million KRW, which is higher than all other countries surveyed. Germany and France, for example, have no imprisonment provisions, and the United States and Germany impose fines instead of imprisonment.

In cases where fatalities occur, penalties for employers include imprisonment of up to 3 years and fines around 10 million KRW. Additionally, some countries such as France, Japan, and Austria apply charges of professional negligence causing death only under criminal law, not under industrial safety and health laws.

In contrast, under South Korea’s Serious Accidents Punishment Act, penalties can include imprisonment of more than 1 year or fines up to 1 billion KRW, and under the Industrial Safety and Health Act, imprisonment of up to 7 years or fines up to 100 million KRW can be imposed.

Notably, South Korea and the United States are the only countries that stipulate aggravated penalties for employers in cases of repeated fatal accidents. While the U.S. imposes aggravated penalties of imprisonment up to 1 year or fines up to 20,000 USD, South Korea’s penalties are much higher, with imprisonment up to 10 years and 6 months or fines up to 150 million KRW.

KEF explained that compared to foreign cases such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada, it was difficult to confirm whether strengthened legislation on penalties for companies and employers causing industrial accident deaths directly impacts the reduction of industrial accidents.

In particular, most developed countries focus on preventive activities rather than punishment, and in fact, the accident fatality rates have decreased in the United Kingdom and Singapore after shifting industrial safety policies to a corporate self-management approach.

KEF pointed out that although the ultimate goal of strengthening penalties is to reduce industrial accidents, the increase in employer penalties is unlikely to lead to a decrease in fatal accidents. They warned that even after the Serious Accidents Punishment Act is enforced next year, the effect on reducing industrial accident fatalities will be minimal or very limited.

Lee Dong-geun, Vice Chairman of KEF, stated, "South Korea’s legal system regarding employer penalties is stronger than that of any other country in the world. To reduce accident fatalities to the level of developed countries, South Korea must reasonably adjust its excessive penalty levels and focus on establishing and implementing prevention-centered industrial safety policies."

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