Reasons for Proposal
As COVID-19 infections spread explosively in distribution centers and call centers and a fire broke out in a distribution warehouse in Icheon, Gyeonggi-do, there are mounting concerns about safety and health accidents in the workplace.
However, the current Act allows deregulation and outsourcing for a variety of legally obligated employees such as safety officer, health officer, occupational health doctor, and environmental manager in the name of promoting corporate activities by easing regulations on such activities.
It has been pointed out that not only does such wide-ranging deregulation cause poor safety and health management, but it also decreases the number of jobs for qualified persons.
According to data from the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency, a cost-benefit analysis of the employment of health officers in mid-sized chemical handling businesses showed a cost-benefit ratio of 1.43, which produces benefits 1.43 times the costs. It was found that single duty positions produced 2.31, while double duty positions were 1.55, which indicates that designating safety and health management as a single duty is much more cost effective.
Furthermore, a survey by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy showed that deleting a provision that allows outsourcing for safety and health officers in the current Act would protect small and medium-sized businesses as such outsourcing is still allowed for businesses with less than 300 employees under the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
In this regard, this Act aims to delete some lenient deregulation provisions such as deregulating obligatory employment, allowing double duty positions, and permitting outsourcing to ensure that businesses take full responsibility for their employees’ safety and health, reduce social costs, and expand opportunities to hire qualified persons.
Details
A. Delete special cases for the hiring of occupational health doctors, environment engineers, liquefied petroleum gas safety officers, and mine safety managers (Articles 28 (1), (4), and (5) deleted)
B. Delete special cases for allowing safety officers such as high-pressure gas safety officers and urban gas safety officers to have double duties (Article 29 deleted)
C. Delete special cases for deregulating the obligation of small or medium entrepreneurs to employ safety officers (Article 30 deleted)
D. Delete special cases for deregulating obligatory employment of holders of at least two qualifications for small or medium entrepreneurs (Article 31 deleted)
E. Delete the current provision that allows a business entity to entrust the duties of safety officers to a management agency designated by the head of a relevant central administrative agency or Mayor/Do Governor (Article 40 deleted)
