Half of Employees Who Committed Extreme Self-Harm Have Less Than 5 Years of Service... 'Workplace Bullying' as the Cause

2022 Sanjae Suicide Status National Assembly Forum
1st Bullying 2nd Overwork 3rd Disciplinary Action

According to a survey, nearly half of the employees who took their own lives last year in relation to their work were low-tenure workers with less than five years of service. Additionally, it was found that 3 out of 10 employees who committed suicide had suffered from workplace bullying.

On the 13th, Workplace Bullying 119 and Representative Yong Hye-in of the Basic Income Party held the "2022 Occupational Suicide Status National Assembly Forum" at the National Assembly and announced the results of a full analysis of 85 cases of suicide-related industrial accident disease certificates issued by the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service last year.

Among the 85 cases of industrial accident claims due to suicide, 48% had a tenure of less than 5 years, which was the highest proportion, followed by 18% with 5 to less than 10 years, and 34% with 10 years or more.

The leading cause of suicide was "workplace bullying including assault," accounting for 25 cases (29.4%). This was followed by "overwork" with 13 cases (15.2%) and "disciplinary or personnel actions" with 12 cases (14.1%).

Out of the 85 cases, 39 were recognized as industrial accidents related to suicide, while 46 were not approved. The approval rate for industrial accident claims related to suicide was 56% in 2021 and 52% in 2022. Considering that the overall industrial accident approval rate is around 90%, it indicates that it is relatively difficult for suicides to be recognized as industrial accidents.

Nam-pyo Kwon, a labor attorney at Haran Labor Law Office, stated, "Even when the Ministry of Employment and Labor acknowledged workplace bullying and issued corrective orders before the victim’s death, the workplace did not provide adequate protection." He emphasized, "Employers must conduct strict investigations into workplace bullying and institutional improvements are needed to protect victims."

Concerns were also raised about the atmosphere where victims hesitate to report bullying due to fear of retaliation or disadvantages at work.

Na-eun Bae, an activist with Workplace Bullying 119, said, "The biggest problem is that victims, even while contemplating death, are unable to report workplace bullying." She added, "Workplace bullying regulations under the Labor Standards Act should be broadly applied to workers in businesses with fewer than five employees, public officials, and others, and protective measures for reporters must be implemented."

Meanwhile, although the "Workplace Bullying Prevention Act" has entered its fifth year since enforcement, the number of reports has steadily increased: 2,130 cases in 2019, 5,823 in 2020, 7,774 in 2021, and 8,961 in 2022. From January to October this year, a total of 7,824 cases were reported.

According to a survey released by Workplace Bullying 119 on the 10th, among 1,000 workers aged 19 and older nationwide, 359 respondents reported having experienced workplace bullying. The survey showed that 153 people (15.3%) had experienced physical assault or verbal abuse. This means that more than one in ten workers have been exposed to direct violence.

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