The Ministry of Employment and Labor will oversee the headquarters of POSCO E&C and 37 business sites where POSCO E&C is currently constructing. POSCO E&C is the contractor for the underground tunnel project on the Shin-Ansan Line in Gwangmyeong, where a collapse accident recently occurred.
Vice Minister Kim Min-seok, acting as the Minister, noted during a full meeting of the National Assembly Environment and Labor Committee held on the 23rd in Yeouido, Seoul, that “seven serious industrial accidents have occurred at POSCO E&C to date.”
The 37 business sites that the Ministry of Employment and Labor is preparing to inspect account for 30% of all sites currently under construction by POSCO E&C. The subjects are expected to mainly be tunnel construction sites. Vice Minister Kim added, “Especially, tunnel construction sites are different from general construction sites, so supervisors are planning to receive training and inspect similar tunnels across the nation.”
Earlier, after a worker death occurred at the Gwangmyeong construction site, the Ministry of Employment and Labor launched an investigation on the 17th into whether POSCO E&C violated the Serious Accident Punishment Act. Just four days later, on the 21st, another worker died at a construction site for apartments in Daegu, prompting another investigation.
Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kang Deuk-gu mentioned that before the collapse accident in Gwangmyeong, the Ministry of Employment and Labor had sent a letter of recommendation to POSCO E&C to stop work, stating, “There are clear regulations that allow for enforcement when recommendations are insufficient, and I believe it is necessary to examine issues within the system.”
Meanwhile, during the meeting, there were repeated criticisms that the budget for ‘large payments’ included in the government's supplementary budget plan under the Ministry of Employment and Labor was insufficient. Large payments refer to a system where the government pays part of back wages for three months to workers who have suffered wage arrears from their employers. Initially, 529.3 billion won was allocated in this year’s budget, but an additional 81.9 billion won will be allocated through the current government supplementary budget.
Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Park Hong-bae stated, “Considering that corporations are struggling and applications for large payments are increasing, the government has estimated the number of expected beneficiaries to rise from 105,000 to 115,000,” and added, “From the perspective of those who have experienced wage arrears, this could be seen as very little assistance.”
In response, Vice Minister Kim explained that funding is lacking. He stated, “Over the past two years, the wage claim guarantee fund has decreased from 660 billion won to about 350 billion won, halving,” and added, “Of course, it would be better to increase it, but due to a shortage of funds, it is not easy. We need to focus on reducing wage arrears.”
Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kim Joo-young mentioned, “Efforts are also needed to increase the recovery rate of large payments, which is only 30% (the percentage of back wages paid by the government that are subsequently recovered from employers).” In response, Vice Minister Kim said, “70% of wage arrears occur at business sites with fewer than 30 employees,” adding, “It is difficult to increase the recovery rate because many are struggling and going out of business, for which I apologize.”