The Ministry of Employment and Labor announced that starting from the 16th, it will conduct a joint labor and industrial safety inspection targeting manufacturers that are prone to violations of working hours and industrial safety over the next two months. This initiative comes in response to concerns that extended nighttime work shifts and the repeated use of special extended work at some manufacturers have led to long working hours, thereby increasing the risk of industrial accidents.
The Ministry will focus on supervising workplaces that frequently use shift systems and special extended work, especially those with a high potential for legal violations. The inspection will comprehensively cover areas such as violations of working hours, non-payment of overtime, night, and holiday work charges, non-compliance with authorized special extended work hours and health protection measures, implementation of safety measures for machines and equipment, special health check-ups, and compliance with break facility installation and standards.
Following the operation of an anonymous reporting center in August for promoting annual leave, the Ministry reported a substantial number of violation cases concerning annual leave and break guarantees among airline crew members, who typically work shift schedules. Hence, the working conditions of major airline crew members will also be thoroughly scrutinized.
Should any legal violations be identified, strict action will be taken according to the relevant regulations, and necessary improvements will be implemented swiftly. Notably, businesses found to violate working hour regulations will be required to participate in the “Shift System Reform Consulting” with the Workplace Innovation Consulting by the Korea Labor Foundation and will be supported in collaboration with the local employment centers.
Beyond the current inspection facilities, the Ministry intends to provide tailored support, including consulting, incentives, and tax credits, to small businesses or sectors focused on life and safety that aim to independently improve entrenched long working hour practices, such as shift schedules, to specifically address and bridge the gap in working hours.
Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon stated, “To effectively reduce actual working hours and protect the health and safety of workers, we must first improve the prolonged working hour practices entrenched in businesses with shift systems and other long-hour employment practices. We will continue to bolster labor supervision to ensure these improvements are realized.”