4 Daewoo Workers Die in 20 Days
By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
Within a period of just over 20 days, four workers at a Daewoo shipbuilding plant died while on duty. Industry insiders have called for tightened safety measures and a special inspection into the facility to put an end to what is being called a "chain of death."
According to the trade union of Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME), a 45-year-old Lee, a subcontracted painter, died from the explosion of a paint container that occurred Wednesday, 11:30 a.m. at the company's plant in Geoje, South Gyeongsang Province.
Lee and his coworkers were applying inflammable paint thinner through a hose with a small nozzle, when a high amount of friction caused the explosion. He was moved to a nearby hospital but died some 16 minutes later. Doctors declared that Lee died of extreme burns.
Lee's death is the third disastrous incident at the site since New Year's Day. The first took place on Jan. 2, when two workers of a subcontractor died of extreme inhalation of argon gas. The third victim drowned by falling from a service tower on Jan. 8.
The Korean Metal Workers Union, an affiliate of the umbrella Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, claimed that the company hasn't been paying enough attention to worker's safety. The incident involving argon gas was the third of its kind following ones in 2007 and 2009.
"The unionists and management decided to attach a safety plug around the hose but the company hasn't followed up on the measure," the group claimed in its press release. It called for a special inspection by the Ministry of Labor into the workplace and the dismissal of local labor auditor.
"Poor management is putting 30,000 workers' lives at risk," Kang Yun-kyung, the group's spokeswoman, said.
However, both the company's management and its unionists have remained calm over the string of incidents.
Cha Yong-chil, head of the Daewoo Shipbuilding unionists, said safety has been the focus of both the union and the management.
"The shipbuilding process is quite dangerous. We have to pay full attention every minute. We haven't yet verified the exact relationship between the working environment and the accident yet, but we assume that the workers might have been less than careful," he said.
Ahn Wook-hyun, spokesman for Daewoo, also said the company has prioritized workplace safety. He said the company stopped all procedures Wednesday in order to review the safety guidelines. Last week, the company announced a new set of guidelines for the gas usage.
Ahn denied allegations that the company's vulnerable financial status has affected safety management ㅡ the company failed to merge with Hanwha group last year and is still waiting for a new owner.
Ahn said the management and unionists will hold a meeting to discuss future measures in regards to the bereaved families and will tighten workplace safety measures in the mean time.