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On December 2, the Legislature passed amendments to the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) in a third reading, revising 25 articles, including 6 newly added provisions. This marks the most extensive change since the Act was fully revised in 2013.
The amendments focus on comprehensive accident prevention and workplace bullying prevention to address persistent serious occupational accidents and public concerns over workplace bullying.
Key Regulatory Changes
For construction projects above a certain scale, the project owner shall conduct risk assessments and allocate a safety and health budget during the planning and design stages. In addition, one contractor shall be designated by the project owner to oversee overall safety and health coordination when multiple contractors are involved and to ensure all contractors implement corresponding preventive measures.
A new chapter on workplace bullying is added, clearly defining bullying and requiring employers to take immediate, effective and appropriate actions upon becoming aware of such incidents. It requires establishing mechanisms for complaints, investigations and reporting.
Furthermore, the amendments raise criminal penalties (imprisonment and fines) for serious occupational accidents and significantly increase administrative fines for violations related to safety facilities and management measures. For penalized business entities, information such as their name, the person in charge, penalties imposed, the date and location of the occupational accident, and the number of affected workers will be publicly disclosed.
Following the passage of the third reading, the Ministry of Labor has commenced the drafting and revision of related subordinate regulations and supporting measures of the OSHA to ensure effective implementation.
