Laborer Pinch-Point Accidents Targeted by Environment and Labor Committee... SPC Shani "Promises to Prevent Recurrence"

Company States "All Necessary Safety Devices Installed"
Over 4 Billion Won Invested This Year to Prevent Safety Accidents
18 Billion Won Safety Equipment Enhancement by 2025... Early Execution

When a worker in his 50s was caught in an accident at the Shani bakery factory, an SPC affiliate, the alarm that was supposed to sound from the machine did not go off, failing to prevent the safety accident. The company actively explained that all mandatory safety devices were installed, while expressing regret again over the fatal entrapment accident and promising to prepare responsible countermeasures.

On the morning of the 16th, Lee Kang-seop, CEO of Shani, wiped sweat during a meeting with the Environment and Labor Committee members of the National Assembly at the Shani bakery factory in Jungwon-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, where a worker died in a machine entrapment accident.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On the 16th, lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties belonging to the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee visited the site of the fatal accident at the Shani bakery factory, an SPC affiliate in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, and received reports from Shani and the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the circumstances of the accident, confirming the situation at the time.

Park Jung, the chairman of the Environment and Labor Committee, said in response to questions about the accident's circumstances, "The machine that lifts and lowers the dough bowl was equipped with a device that sounds an alarm at the workers' request, but it needs to be further checked whether it functioned properly at the time of the accident." He added, "It must be further clarified whether the alarm did not sound due to a malfunction or if someone manually turned it off. The company also agreed to report later."

However, Shani stated that all mandatory safety devices required by regulations were installed at the time. A Shani official said, "The dividing machine and the mobile bowl lift, where the accident occurred, were equipped with all safety devices that must be installed according to laws and regulations, such as emergency stop switches." Although the alarm device is not a mandatory device to be installed on the bowl lift, it was installed to enhance safety, and the police are currently investigating whether it was functioning normally at the time of the accident.

Nevertheless, the political sphere is targeting worker entrapment accidents. Lee Su-jin, the Democratic Party's secretary of the Environment and Labor Committee, said, "It is unfortunate that a similar fatal accident occurred less than a year after an accident at an SPC affiliate factory. SPC issued a public apology to prevent recurrence, but it is questionable what measures were taken." She criticized, "It must be revealed whether the measures were more than just words and whether various safety measures and industrial safety rules were properly implemented. We will try all possible measures in the National Assembly, including state audits and hearings."

In October last year, after a fatal accident involving a worker in his 20s at the SPL bakery factory in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, an SPC affiliate, Chairman Heo Young-in apologized and announced an investment of 100 billion won over three years to prevent safety accidents. Since then, about 4 billion won has been invested, and 18 billion won will be spent early on strengthening safety facilities by 2025.

Regarding speculation that the accident risk increased due to excessive work under the 24-hour two-shift system, Shani repeatedly emphasized that this was not true. A Shani official stated, "The production line where the accident occurred adjusts working hours according to order volume and is not a line operating 24 hours continuously." He added, "The employee involved in the accident has been working the day shift continuously since 2021, with an average working time of 8.5 hours, so it cannot be considered excessive work." Lee Kang-seop, CEO of Shani, said, "We are sincerely cooperating with the Ministry of Employment and Labor and police investigations to clearly identify the cause of the accident," and added, "We will do our best to create a safe industrial site so that such unfortunate accidents never happen again at the workplace."

Earlier, on the 8th, a worker in his 50s working at the Shani factory was caught in the dough equipment machine and was transported to the hospital but eventually died. According to the police investigation so far, a fellow worker who pressed the machine button at the time of the accident has been criminally charged with negligent homicide.

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