KCCI: "Serious Accident Punishment Act, 'All Remedies Ineffective'"... 4-Week Nationwide Consulting

42 Regions Including Seoul and Busan... Explanation of Safety and Health Management System Establishment Plans

Seoul Jung-gu Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry building. (Photo by Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok]

"Following a recent major accident at the Yeosu National Industrial Complex, large corporations are requiring their partner companies to establish safety and health management systems equivalent to their own, causing significant difficulties for these partner companies." (Yeosu Chamber of Commerce and Industry)

"Although there are guides on the Serious Accidents Punishment Act distributed by the government, many parts are unclear just by looking at the materials." (Dangjin Chamber of Commerce and Industry)

As businesspeople nationwide face difficulties complying with the obligations stipulated in the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry announced on the 28th that it will hold briefing sessions over four weeks, visiting 42 regional chambers across the country including Seoul and Busan. Starting with the Siheung Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Gyeonggi Province on the 30th, the Korea Chamber plans to hold the "Serious Accidents Punishment Act Key Contents and Corporate Safety and Health Management System Establishment Tour Briefing" for 42 regional chambers over four weeks until the 28th of next month. Although initially planned to be held in six regions, due to high corporate interest, the event will be expanded with support from 42 regional chambers. The briefings will be held offline at the respective chambers of commerce while strictly adhering to government quarantine guidelines. Companies wishing to participate can inquire at their local chamber of commerce.

During the briefing sessions, the chambers will explain the key provisions of the law, including the safety and health assurance obligations of management executives, penalties, and administrative sanctions, as well as responsibilities under similar laws such as the Industrial Safety and Health Act. They will specifically explain the seven core elements related to the establishment of safety and health management systems, which companies have found challenging. These include management leadership, worker participation, hazard identification, hazard elimination, substitution and control, emergency action plan establishment, ensuring safety and health during subcontracting, outsourcing, and consignment, and evaluation and improvement of implementation status.

Enforced since January 27th, this law imposes on management executives the responsibility to ensure safety and health not only for their own employees but also for subcontracted workers and labor providers. If a serious accident resulting in death occurs due to failure to comply, a prison sentence of one year or more can be imposed. Regarding this, a Yeosu Chamber official appealed, "Not only are briefing sessions for partner companies necessary, but professional personnel and consulting support are urgently needed to help these companies establish safety and health management systems." Previously, on the 11th of last month, a fatal major industrial accident occurred at Yeochun NCC located in the Yeosu Industrial Complex.

A Dangjin Chamber official organizing the tour briefing said, "Even large corporations that had sufficiently prepared before the law's enforcement are experiencing industrial accidents after the law took effect, leaving small and medium-sized enterprises in the region at a loss about how to respond," and added, "We expect the briefing sessions to resolve companies' concerns." Yoo Il-ho, head of the Employment and Labor Policy Team at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, stated, "There are ambiguous parts in the law such as the obligation to secure safety and health management and the scope of responsibility of the primary contractor, causing difficulties for companies in compliance," and added, "We will collect difficulties and opinions companies face after the law's enforcement to identify legislative improvements and policy support tasks and make recommendations."

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