South Korea: tougher sanctions for workplace accidents

South Korea’s Severe Accident Punishment Act entered into force on 27 January 2022, one year after it was passed by the country’s national assembly. Under the new provisions, applicable to most Korean companies, managers at firms that fail to comply run the risk of heavy criminal penalties – up to one year in prison and/or a fine of 1 billion won (€750,000) – in the event of a serious accident resulting in death. The companies themselves meanwhile can be fined up to 5 billion won (€3.75 million). Complainants have the option of filing civil suits, with the possibility of claiming compensation of up to five times the actual damages. In addition to the potential sanctions introduced, the law requires companies to implement a health and safety management system with a sufficient budget to prevent accidents; to implement new preventive and corrective measures in the event of a serious accident; to regularly update safety measures in accordance with new guidelines issued by national and local government agencies; and to adopt all necessary measures to ensure that obligations arising from other health and safety regulations are met. It should be noted that the law provides for an additional two-year transition period for construction companies with project costs of up to 5 billion won and for other companies with fewer than 50 employees.