A landslide, which took place at a quarry in a town northwest of Seoul last Saturday, claimed the lives of three workers. About 300,000 cubic meters of soil collapsed at the quarry in Yangju, Gyeonggi Province, when the workers were digging holes for demolition work. The police have charged an official responsible for the demolition work at Sampyo Industry ― a manufacturer of construction materials ― with professional negligence and manslaughter.
The accident is drawing attention as Sampyo Industry could become the first workplace to be subject to the Severe Disaster Punishment Act that went into effect on Jan. 27. According to the law, the owners and CEOs of companies with five or more employees can face a minimum one-year prison sentence or a fine of up to 1 billion won ($833,000) in the event of severe workplace disasters. The latest accident will likely be the first case to which the new law is applied if it is confirmed that the company violated safety rules. The labor ministry will likely ask law enforcement authorities to prosecute those responsible, considering the strong public outcry over the accident.
Many local businesses are paying keen attention to the Sampyo case. The industrial community seems to be on full alert about the level of penalty and punishment to be handed down on the company owner. For now, the accident's aftereffects are unlikely to spill over to the owner's family. However, local builders that shut down their construction sites late last month to avoid becoming the first targets of the new law, seem to be worried that punishing company owners has become a reality with the new law.
Korea has put into effect the workplace disaster law in order to shed the disgrace of recording one of the highest industrial disaster and mortality rates among OECD member nations. The law took effect after the government suspended the enforcement of the law for one year. Still, two days after its implementation, three people died in an industrial disaster. If the owner's family is confirmed to have been involved in wrongdoing, corresponding punishment should follow. The whole nation is watching the case closely. Companies should do more to protect workers from workplace disasters that could have been prevented if the proper safety measures had been taken.