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Lee vows to make Korea society 'where people don't die at work' at SPC plant

Published: 25 Jul. 2025, 18:39

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during an on-site labor-management roundtable on preventing industrial accidents at SPC Samlip's Sihwa plant in Siheung, Gyeonggi, on July 25. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

President Lee Jae Myung vowed to build a society “where people don't die at work, where workplaces bring happiness and where safety is guaranteed” while reprimanding SPC on Friday at the bakery conglomerate's plant where a worker died earlier this year.

During a roundtable at the facility in Siheung, Gyeonggi, Lee began by paying respects to the victims of fatal industrial accidents. “I pray for the repose of the workers who lost their lives in the workplace,” he said.

The SPC Samlip Siheung facility drew national attention after a female worker was killed in May when she was caught in machinery, marking the third fatal accident at a SPC-affiliated plant in less than three years.

Executives from the company attended the meeting, including SPC Group Chairman Hur Young-in, SPC Samlip CEO Kim Bum-soo and Kim Ji-hyung, chair of SPC’s compliance committee. From the government, Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon and ministry Occupational Safety and Health Office Director Kim Jong-yoon were present.

“I also come from a working-class background and am a victim of an industrial accident myself,” Lee continued. “Yet even after all these decades, far too many workers are still dying on the job.”

President Lee Jae Myung, right, speaks with SPC Group Chairman Hur Young-in, left, during an on-site labor-management meeting on preventing industrial accidents at SPC Samlip's Sihwa plant in Siheung, Gyeonggi, on July 25. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

The president criticized the repeated nature of such accidents.

“People fall to their deaths, are crushed or get caught in machines. If such accidents happened unpredictably and by chance, that might be understandable. But the same kind of accidents, in the same way, at the same places, keep happening — that’s the real problem.”

“It’s something we can foresee and prevent, so then why do the same accidents keep occurring?” he asked. “One likely reason is that the cost of prevention and the consequences of an accident are not properly balanced.”

He emphasized that no economic consideration should take precedence over human life.

“We’ll need to look into each individual case, but if safety and life are being sacrificed for the sake of money and cost, then that is absolutely something we must change.”

The president also pointed out the disparity between Korea’s economic status and safety conditions.

“They say Korea is one of the world’s top 10 economies and has a per capita income close to $40,000, but our workplaces don’t feel like those of an advanced country. That means the labor minister will have a lot of work ahead.”

President Lee Jae Myung enters SPC Samlip's Sihwa plant in Siheung, Gyeonggi, on July 25 with Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon, SPC Group Chairman Hur Young-in and others for an on-site labor-management meeting on preventing industrial accidents. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

Lee instructed his officials to explore concrete policy options.

“Let’s not just focus on this particular case [SPC]. Korea has the highest rate of fatal workplace accidents among OECD [Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development] countries. We need to come up with practical and realistic solutions to bring that number down.”

He also referred to Korea’s high suicide and traffic fatality rates.

“Our country has the highest suicide rate in the world, and also too many deaths from traffic accidents and industrial incidents,” he said. “The new administration is determined to fundamentally change this harsh reality, where so many people are dying for so many reasons.

“Even if we can’t become a perfectly happy society, we should at least prevent people from taking their own lives out of despair,” he added.”

If you or someone you know is feeling emotionally distressed or struggling with thoughts of suicide, LifeLine Korea can be contacted at 1588-9191 or the Crisis Counseling Center at 1577-0199. The Seoul Global Center offers English-language counseling, contact 02-2075-4180 (+1) to arrange a session. Other international helplines can be found at www.befrienders.org.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY JANG GU-SEUL [[email protected]]