BJFEZ Takes the Lead in Strengthening the Safety and Health Management System to Prevent Serious Accidents

'Less Burden, More Safety' with Smart Safety Management in the Workplace

◈ Serious Accidents Punishment Act expands coverage to businesses with 5 to 50 employees, increasing burdens on SMEs.

◈ Commissioner Kim of BJFEZ Authority visits companies to understand their challenges and ensures prompt support through the supplementary budget.

◈ BJFEZ Authority promotes the "Safety Management Support Program to Prevent Serious Accidents," recruiting participating companies from June 25 to July 5.

 

The Busan-Jinhae Free Economic Zone Authority (Commissioner Kim Ki-young, hereafter referred to as the BJFEZ Authority) is taking proactive steps to assist tenant companies struggling to establish safety and health management systems due to the recent expansion of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act. This law now applies to businesses with more than five but fewer than 50 employees.

The Serious Accidents Punishment Act mandates that business owners or respinsible managing officers implement a safety and health management system to prevent fatal industrial accidents. This safety and health management system involves identifying harmful and dangerous factors in the workplace, developing improvement measures, and continuously enhancing safety practices by companies themsleves.

The Act also emphasizes employers' obligations to establish these systems and imposes strict penalties for major incidents without building the measures, aiming to prevent serious accidents and minimize workplace damage triggered by these fatal accidents.

However, many small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) feel overwhelmed by the need to implement these systems, often struggling to access basic information on how to proceed and the associated costs. While larger companies can manage compliance with the Serious Accidents Punishment Act through their resources, smaller firms find it challenging to obtain the necessary information.

In response to these challenges, Commissioner Kim has been personally visiting companies to listen to their concerns about the Serious Accidents Punishment Act and to develop practical support measures. To provide immediate assistance, he advocated for the inclusion of an additional budget, enabling the BJFEZ Authority to implement the Safety Management Support Program from the second half of this year.

To ensure compliance with safety and health management policies, companies must maintain relevant records. This often requires detailed documentation of activities, which must be accessible and traceable at all times. Many SMEs typically rely on manual record-keeping, making management difficult.

To address this, BJFEZ Authority is supporting companies in adopting smart safety management systems. These systems utilize cloud-based web and mobile services to facilitate proactive risk management, safety inspections, and emergency responses in real time. This approach is expected to reduce safety and health costs while improving productivity and systematic record-keeping.

The support project will recruit participating companies from June 25 to July 5, selecting five companies through an evaluation process. Selected companies will be introduced to the "Smart Safety Management Program" and receive tailored training to ease the burden of safety management for SMEs.

Commissioner Kim Ki-young stated, "Implementing a smart management system that promotes systematic and proactive responses will significantly enhance worker safety and sustainable management practices. We are committed to identifying factors that burden businesses and creating the best possible environment for them."

The BJFEZ Authority will continue to engage with companies to prevent major accidents and develop various practical measures to raise safety and health awareness in the BJFEZ.