VR-Based Safety Training Center Opens for Foreign Laborers in Gimhae (Image supported by ChatGPT)
GIMHAE, South Korea, July 23 (Korea Bizwire) — Gimhae, a city in South Gyeongsang Province with a high concentration of foreign laborers, has opened South Korea’s first virtual reality (VR) industrial safety training facility designed specifically for foreign workers.
The new VR center, located at the Gimhae Foreign Workers Support Center, was officially inaugurated on July 22 with city mayor Hong Tae-yong, Yangsan Employment and Labor Office chief Kwon Gu-hyun, and Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (KOSHA) president Kim Hyun-jung in attendance.
Funded entirely by KOSHA and operated by the support center, the facility enables foreign workers to experience and learn how to respond to various workplace hazards through immersive VR simulations. The program minimizes language and cultural barriers by emphasizing visual and auditory content.
The initiative follows a March roundtable between Gimhae city officials, the labor ministry, and KOSHA. Given the city’s dense population of small and medium-sized enterprises and over 13,000 foreign workers — representing 43% of its total 31,000 foreign residents — Gimhae was chosen as the pilot site for the national project.
“This facility allows foreign workers to experience workplace risks firsthand and practice safety skills in a realistic setting,” said Kang Sun-hee, head of the support center. “We hope to see this model expand nationwide, starting from Gimhae.”
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
