On 22 May 2013, the MoEL announced the Serious Chemical Accident Prevention Measures. The occurrence of chemical accidents in Korea could be mainly blamed to contactors’ non-compliance with safety rules, outsourcing to unqualified subcontractors and their lack of comprehensive management on chemical handling workplace. The Measures focuses the following five aspects:
Compliance with safety rules across workplace
Restriction on indiscriminate outsourcing to unqualified subcontractors
Principal contractors’ responsibility on safety and health management
Hierarchical management of chemical handling in workplace based on risk degree
Scale infrastructure to prevent serious chemical accidents
Specified in the Measures, CEOs are urged to ensure compliance with safety rules across the workplace. Judicial punishment, e.g. an order of operation suspension will be imposed if serious chemical accidents occurred due to non-compliance with relevant safety rules.
The government will expand the scope of harmful or hazardous work. Work involving very hazardous substances will be included. The principal contractor is allowed to outsource such work only when getting permission from the MoEL, which largely depends on the qualification of subcontractors. The principal contractor is required to select subcontractor based on its experience, facilities, emergency response ability, etc. The permission will be valid for three years, along with the government’s periodic inspections.
The chemical handling work will be classified into three groups, high-risk, moderate-risk and low-risk and a hierarchical management could be applied. The MoEL will set up a dedicated unit in headquarter to manage all chemical accidents and occupational diseases caused by chemicals. Other measures will be taken to prevent chemical accidents, such as increase the number of occupational safety inspectors, establish a database covering workplace hazards, conduct national survey on workplace, etc.
