Occupational Safety and Health Act

• Industrial accident : a case in which a person providing labor dies, is injured, or contracts a disease due to buildings, equipment, raw materials, gases, vapors, dust, and the like related to the work, or due to the work or that business
• Contract for work : a contract entrusting another party with the manufacturing of goods, construction, repair, the provision of services, and the like
• Contractor (ordering party) : an employer who orders out the manufacturing of goods, construction, repair, or the provision of services (excluding a construction work ordering party)
• Subcontractor : an employer who has been engaged by the ordering party to manufacture goods, perform construction or repair, provide services, and the like
• Construction work ordering party : a party that orders construction work and does not lead, oversee, and manage the execution of the construction work

An employer must comply with policies for maintaining and improving the safety and health of workers and for preventing industrial accidents.

• Standards for preventing industrial accidents
• Creating a work environment that reduces workers' physical fatigue and mental stress
• Improvement of working conditions
• Providing workers with safety and health information about the workplace

• Hazards from machinery, instruments, and equipment
• Hazards from explosive, ignitable, and flammable substances and the like
• Hazards from electricity, heat, and energy
• Hazards from improper work methods during operations such as excavation, quarrying, loading and unloading, logging, transport, handling, conveyance, and dismantling
• Hazards from falls, falling objects, and natural disasters

• Causes such as raw materials, gases, vapors, dust, fumes, and mist
• Causes such as radiation, harmful light, high heat, cold, ultrasound, and noise
• Causes such as gases, liquids, or residues discharged from the workplace
• Causes such as instrument monitoring, computer terminal operation, and precision machining
• Causes such as simple repetitive work
• Causes such as violations of appropriate standards for ventilation, lighting, and illumination
• Causes such as prolonged work during heat waves and cold spells
• Other health impairments caused by matters such as verbal abuse from customers

In particular, the Rules on Occupational Safety and Health Standards were amended so that at least 20 minutes of rest every two hours became mandatory during heat-wave work where the perceived temperature is 33 degrees or higher, so employers should review heat-wave safety guidelines, such as providing cooling gear and supplying water.

The right to suspend work is guaranteed so that a worker may stop work and secure safety when the worker recognizes an imminent danger of an industrial accident.

In this case, the worker who has suspended work and evacuated must report the facts to a supervisor or the like without delay, and the employer must not impose any disadvantageous treatment, such as dismissal, on the ground that the worker exercised this right.

• Check whether protective devices and alarm devices are operating before starting work
• Wearing protective equipment (such as a safety helmet, safety shoes, and a dust mask) is mandatory
• Check the material safety data sheet (MSDS) in advance when handling chemical substances

The Occupational Safety and Health Act sets out the standards for asbestos surveys and removal or dismantling work when buildings or facilities are demolished or dismantled.

During asbestos removal or dismantling work, the airborne asbestos concentration in the relevant work area must be 0.01 fibers per cubic centimeter of asbestos.

• Work performed by someone other than a licensed asbestos removal or dismantling contractor : imprisonment for up to 5 years or a fine of up to 50 million won
• Violation of the standards for asbestos removal or dismantling work : imprisonment for up to 3 years or a fine of up to 30 million won
• Removal or dismantling by an institution that conducted the institutional asbestos survey : an administrative fine of up to 5 million won
• Exceeding the asbestos concentration standard : an administrative fine of up to 50 million won

In the case of workers engaged in hazardous or dangerous work, they must not be required to work more than 6 hours per day or 34 hours per week.

[Examples of hazardous and dangerous work]

• Caisson or diving work
• Work inside a pit
• Work in places that are markedly hot and warm due to the handling of large quantities of high-temperature objects
• Work in places that are markedly cold and chilly due to the handling of large quantities of low-temperature objects
• Work handling radium radiation, X-rays, and harmful radiation
• Work in places where dust from glass, soil, stone, or minerals scatters heavily
• Work in places where intense noise and vibration occur (rock drills, etc.)
• Work handling heavy objects by human power
• Work in places where heavy metals and chemical substances such as lead, mercury, chromium, manganese, and cadmium are generated in large quantities

Where an employer's safety measures are inadequate and a resulting fatal accident or similar event occurs, the employer may be subject to criminal punishment.

In addition, where an employer is found guilty in connection with the death of a worker, the court may also impose an order to complete coursework, such as completion of an occupational safety and health program necessary for the prevention of industrial accidents, within a limit of 200 hours.

Moreover, when a serious accident occurs, not only the site manager but also the representative may be held liable, both for violation of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and for violation of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.

Every workplace must establish an industrial accident prevention plan and review it periodically.

There is also an obligation, when an accident occurs, to immediately suspend work, provide first aid, and report to the competent labor office.

A worker must report even a minor accident to a manager, and overlooking or neglecting this may be unfavorable for later compensation or industrial accident processing.

The Occupational Safety and Health Act is one of the most effective safeguards for protecting the life and body of workers.

However much the law may be strengthened, it is of no use if the workers within a workplace are unaware of it.

With the recent enforcement of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, employers' responsibilities have been strengthened, so workers should also actively exercise their rights and become parties who observe safety and health rules.

In addition, the Occupational Safety and Health Act provides separate safety and health measures for workers in various forms of employment, including workers in special types of employment, such as insurance planners, quick-service drivers, and substitute drivers, as well as delivery workers and franchisees.

In this case, you should clearly assess the safety and health obligations across the various forms of employment and platform-based labor, and exercise the rights you need.

If you need legal counsel on a matter such as a violation of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, please contact our firm, where an evidence-examination specialist, a labor attorney (nomusa), and a labor-law attorney form a task force to stand on the client's side.

Daeryun Law Firm's Labor and Industrial Accident Group is available to listen to clients 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.