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The Serious Accident Punishment Act, which allows the person in charge of management to be punished if a serious accident occurs at an industrial site, will come into effect from today (27th). It applies to all workplaces with 5 or more employees, but to reduce confusion in the field, the application is suspended for two years for businesses with fewer than 50 employees.
By Nam Seung-mo, staff reporter.
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In 2008, there was a fire in a frozen warehouse in Icheon, Gyeonggi-do, in which 40 people lost their lives.
The Act on Punishment of Serious Accidents, which has been discussed in the wake of this accident, will go into effect today.
Serious accidents are broadly divided into serious industrial accidents and serious civil accidents. It is classified as a serious industrial accident.
A serious civil accident is a disaster that occurs due to defects in the design, manufacturing, installation, and management of specific raw materials or products, public facilities or public transportation.
In both accidents, if a business manager fails to comply with his/her safety and health obligations and an accident occurs, he/she may be subject to criminal punishment. A fine of up to KRW 100 million will be imposed.
The Ministry of Labor is responsible for the investigation of serious industrial accidents and the police for serious civil accidents.
All workplaces with five or more employees are eligible, but to reduce confusion on the site, the application is suspended for two years for workplaces with fewer than 50 employees or construction sites with a construction cost of less than KRW 5 billion.
The Ministry of Labor called for the establishment of a safety and health management system, saying that the Act on the Punishment of Serious Accidents is a law that focuses on 'prevention' of serious accidents rather than 'punishment' of business owners and managers.