Reckless Subcontracting Practices Under Scrutiny as South Korea Strengthens Construction Safety Laws (Image supported by ChatGPT)
SEOUL, Aug. 12 (Korea Bizwire) — The South Korean government is focusing on reforming subcontracting practices in the construction industry, identifying illegal subcontracting and reckless sub-subcontracting as major contributors to workplace accidents.
According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, Minister Kim Young-hoon recently announced plans to collaborate with relevant agencies to eliminate these illegal practices, which are frequently cited as the root causes of industrial accidents.
The Ministry’s concerns are based on findings from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport, which uncovered 520 violations across 1,607 construction sites in the first half of this year.
Among these violations, illegal subcontracting accounted for the largest portion, with 197 cases, representing nearly 38% of all infractions. A 2022 audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection also linked illegal subcontracting to major safety accidents at construction sites.
In response, the Ministry of Employment and Labor has vowed to accelerate reforms within its jurisdiction, including tightening the criteria for selecting qualified subcontractors.
The aim is to ensure that subcontractors have the necessary safety and health management capabilities. As part of these reforms, the Ministry will provide clearer guidelines for selecting qualified subcontractors, which were introduced in 2020 but have lacked specificity.
The government is also working to strengthen the responsibility of primary contractors to ensure that health and safety management funds are properly allocated to subcontractors.
Furthermore, the Ministry plans to address the issue of sub-subcontracting in high-risk public sector construction projects, including confined space work, by restricting such tasks to contractors capable of taking appropriate safety measures.
While the law currently prohibits sub-subcontracting in construction, there are concerns that these regulations are not being properly enforced, as seen in the tragic incident in Incheon last month, where two workers died after illegal subcontracting led to a safety breach.
The government’s efforts aim to reduce safety risks and prevent further accidents by tightening regulations, improving the enforcement of safety protocols, and ensuring greater accountability at all levels of the construction supply chain.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
