Yongsan-gu, First in Seoul to Inspect Serious Accident Punishment Act, Finds 'No Issues'

[Seoul District News] Yongsan-gu Major Industrial Accident Compliance Inspection Results 'Normal Compliance' & Major Citizen Accident Target Facility Safety Plan 'Faithful Implementation'

Park Hee-young, Mayor of Yongsan District (center), is inspecting the Sinyongsan Underpass, one of the major disaster management facilities in the area, as the first schedule of the 8th term of the local government on July 1.

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Yongsan-gu (District Mayor Park Hee-young) conducted a self-inspection of major accident sites in the first half of this year in accordance with the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, becoming the first of Seoul's 25 autonomous districts to complete a report to the district mayor.

The Serious Accidents Punishment Act strengthens penalties against business owners or management officials when serious accidents occur due to violations of safety and health obligations at workplaces with 50 or more regular employees. It was enacted on January 26, 2021, and has been in effect since January 27, 2022.

The law distinguishes between 'industrial accidents,' which protect the safety of on-site workers, and 'citizen accidents,' which ensure the safety of citizens. Legally, compliance must be checked at least once every six months, and the results reported to management officials. Local governments are also subject to this law, where the management official is the head of the local government.

A district official stated, "Since major accidents often lead to casualties, we conducted a more thorough inspection," adding, "The compliance check results for major industrial accidents showed 'normal compliance,' and the safety plan implementation results for facilities subject to major citizen accidents showed 'faithful compliance.'"

Major industrial accidents apply to workplaces with five or more regular employees, where there is at least one death, two or more injuries from the same accident, or three or more occupational disease cases with the same harmful factor within one year. The district's target group includes about 2,400 people working in the district office, health centers, and community service centers, including public officials.

According to the district, the safety and health obligation compliance inspection results for the first half of 2022 showed a 60% decrease in industrial accident cases compared to the average of the past three years. Each workplace has established and is implementing a safety and health management system based on nine items, including safety and health goals and management policies. They also confirmed the implementation of safety and health obligations related to risk assessments, mandatory legal education, and subcontracting, outsourcing, and consignment businesses.

The number of industrial accidents averaged 7.67 cases in the first half and 8.67 cases in the second half over the past three years, compared to 3 cases in the first half of 2022.

The district plans to continue巡回 inspections in the second half of the year to verify compliance and improvements. Efforts at the district level to prevent major industrial accidents will also be enhanced, including special measures for winter snow removal and cleaning tasks.

Major citizen accidents occur when there is at least one death in public use facilities, 10 or more injuries from the same accident, or 10 or more disease cases from the same cause. There are 41 facilities in the area subject to this, including 16 daycare centers, 6 road bridges, 5 retaining walls, Yongsan Kkum Namu Complex Town, and Yongsan Electronics Market.

The district established a safety plan for facilities subject to major citizen accidents in February and reported it to the district mayor. Following the plan, inspections of 41 public use facilities subject to major citizen accidents were completed from May 18 to June 3. The inspections covered facility stability, management status, and safety hazards and risk factors. Overall, the facility conditions were good, with no major or urgent issues.

Park Hee-young, Mayor of Yongsan-gu, said, "The most important thing in creating a premium city Yongsan is the safety of residents," adding, "The Serious Accidents Punishment Act has been implemented, and our Yongsan-gu was the first in Seoul to receive inspection results. We place significance on the fact that the number of industrial accidents has decreased."

To protect the lives and bodies of citizens and workers, the district established a Serious Accident Prevention Team within the district office, which began operations on January 1 of this year. The team consists of five members, including safety and health managers, and is responsible for overall management, supervision, and response to compliance with industrial and citizen accident obligations.

Upcoming schedules include conducting statutory regular training for supervisors (team leaders) in September and holding the third Industrial Safety and Health Committee meeting of 2022. The district also plans to establish a comprehensive serious accident plan and facility safety plan for 2023.

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