Harsh 'Exclusion of Military Service Designated Companies' Regardless of Disaster Severity

Mid-term Ombudsman Promotes Improvement of Industrial Accident Regulations for Industrial Technical Personnel

Park Ju-bong, Deputy Minister and Ombudsman for Small and Medium Enterprises, speaking. [Photo by Asia Economy DB]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Jong-hwa] There are claims that the regulations related to industrial accidents for industrial technical personnel, which exclude designated military service companies by comparing industrial accident rates by industry without considering the severity of the accidents, are harsh on the affected small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Even if only one minor injury such as a sprain occurs, if the industrial accident rate is higher than that of the same industry, the company can be excluded from the selection as a designated military service company.

On the afternoon of the 18th, Park Ju-bong, the Small and Medium Business Ombudsman (vice minister level), held the 'S.O.S. Talk, SME Meeting' at the Gyeonggi-do Economic Science Promotion Agency in Yeongtong-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do. S.O.S Talk is a joint meeting held since 2015 by the Small and Medium Business Ombudsman and the Small and Medium Business Corporation to resolve regulatory difficulties faced by local SMEs, held 14 to 16 times annually, and this was the ninth event this year.

About 20 officials attended the meeting, including Lee Seong-hee, Vice President of the Small and Medium Business Corporation, Kim Han-sik, Head of the Gyeonggi Regional Small and Medium Business Administration, Lee Byung-chul, Head of the Gyeonggi Regional Headquarters of the Small and Medium Business Corporation, Lee Seong-cheon, Head of the Southern Gyeonggi Branch, Jung Byung-ok, Director of Regulatory Policy Research, and eight representatives of SMEs in the Gyeonggi region.

At the meeting, various voices from SME owners requesting improvements to on-site difficulties and regulations were heard. Company A, which attended the meeting, stated, "The current standard for calculating industrial accident rates for selecting designated military service companies does not consider the severity of accidents, so even one minor industrial accident such as a simple sprain can lead to exclusion from the selection, which is unreasonable." They requested improvements to the related regulations, saying, "Although the regulations separately define industrial accidents caused by fatal or serious accidents, reflecting the industrial accident rate as well constitutes excessive double regulation."

In fact, the management regulations for industrial technical personnel specify that companies with an industrial accident rate higher than the average rate by industry size in the same sector over the past year can be excluded from the selection as designated military service companies. The problem is that for SMEs with 30 to 49 employees, the accident rate is 0.53%, and for companies with 50 to 99 employees, it is 0.48%. Depending on the industry, even if one or two employees suffer only minor bruises, the company can be excluded from the selection.

SMEs complain that although fatal accidents and serious accidents are separately defined, reflecting the industrial accident rate is excessively harsh and may lead to concealment of accidents. They point out that factors such as expected days off work and the degree of illness or injury should be considered. The related regulations were newly established in 2018 to protect industrial technical personnel from the risks of industrial accidents. In 2019, at the industry's request, the "industrial accident rate over the past three years" was partially revised to "industrial accident rate over the past one year."

In response, Ombudsman Park said, "Even considering the original purpose of the regulations to ensure safe service conditions for industrial technical personnel, it is necessary to comprehensively consider that calculating the industrial accident rate without reflecting the severity of injuries or days off work can act as double regulation on companies." He added, "I will request a review of regulatory improvements in consultation with the related agency, the Military Manpower Administration."

Also, Company B, which manufactures air conditioner parts for automobiles, appealed, "We export more than 5 million dollars annually to Hungary, China, and other countries, and although the current high exchange rate conditions are favorable for exports, there are difficulties in discovering additional buyers and entering new markets." They called for support policies to expand exports, such as resuming exhibitions and trade delegations that were reduced or suspended after COVID-19.

In response, Lee Seong-hee, Vice President of the Small and Medium Business Corporation, said, "Trade delegations are programs where local governments, the Small and Medium Business Corporation, and KOTRA cooperate to connect SMEs wishing to expand overseas with local companies." He added, "Although most were suspended after COVID-19, we will continuously consult with local governments such as Gyeonggi-do and Hwaseong-si to promptly resume these programs for SMEs wishing to expand overseas."

In addition, attendees raised various regulatory and on-site difficulties, including △ easing visa issuance criteria and quota systems for foreign workers, △ establishing strength test standards for automobile connecting devices, △ simplifying new medical technology evaluation procedures, △ raising policy fund support limits according to sales growth, △ matching and consulting support with safety and environmental experts, and △ expanding non-face-to-face contracts for policy funds.

Vice President Lee said, "We will actively review areas where the Small and Medium Business Corporation can provide support, and we will work closely with the Ombudsman to ensure that the voices of SMEs are well conveyed in government proposals." Ombudsman Park promised, "We will do our best to communicate the voices from the field discussed today to the relevant ministries and work towards improvements."

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