Received Labor Costs to Form Team for On-Site Work... Court Rules "No Survivor Benefits as They Are 'Business Operators'"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] Even if a subcontracted construction company paid labor costs and the person worked at the construction site, if they had independent decision-making authority regarding team members' wages and specific work methods, the court ruled that they should be considered a business operator, not a worker.

On the 13th, the Seoul Administrative Court Administrative Division 8 (Presiding Judge Lee Jonghwan) announced that it recently ruled against the plaintiff in the first trial of a lawsuit filed by the family of Mr. A against the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service, seeking cancellation of the denial of survivor benefits.

Previously, Mr. A died in March 2018 while working on the basement floor at a mixed-use apartment complex construction site in Bupyeong-gu, Incheon, due to a large fire that spread from sparks flying from a welder on the first floor. Subsequently, the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service stated that "Mr. A was not a worker, and his death does not qualify as a work-related accident," and rejected the claim for survivor benefits and funeral expenses.

The family argued, "(Mr. A) received specific work instructions and supervision related to formwork from the primary contractor and was provided with various materials and tools necessary for formwork by Company B," and filed the lawsuit.

The court ruled in favor of the Service, stating that "Mr. A was a 'business operator' who received the contract for the work." The court explained, "Company B was a subcontractor for this construction project and only requested Mr. A to complete the formwork within the construction period and conveyed various safety and site management instructions," adding, "They did not provide specific work instructions or supervision."

In fact, Mr. A, who had expertise in formwork, received the entire team's labor costs from Company B, and it was found that he had independent decision-making authority regarding manpower supply, wage determination for individual workers, and specific work execution methods.

The court further explained that considering Mr. A did not perform formwork alone but independently formed a considerable-sized team and carried out work at other construction sites, it is difficult to view him as a worker providing exclusive labor for Company B.

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