Home > National > Politics

President Lee Jae Myung slams Posco E&C over string of workplace deaths

Published: 29 Jul. 2025, 14:10 Updated: 29 Jul. 2025, 17:20

President Lee Jae Myung speaks at a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on July 29. [YONHAP]

President Lee Jae Myung strongly criticized Posco Engineering & Construction (Posco E&C) on Tuesday over a series of fatal industrial accidents at its sites, calling the repeated deaths tantamount to "murder by willful negligence" if viewed through a legal lens.

Speaking at a Cabinet meeting held at the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, Lee noted that Posco E&C has seen its fifth fatal workplace accident this year.

"The same kind of fatal accident happening over and over again means they’re ultimately tolerating death. In legal terms, it would be considered murder by willful negligence," Lee said.

He condemned the company’s safety practices, questioning whether "people have become numb to workers dying for their business operations" or whether "human lives are being treated as expendable tools on the job."

"A workplace, where people go to earn a living, has turned into a battlefield. Can such a thing be acceptable?" he asked.

Lee emphasized that the recurrence of similar fatal accidents in the same locations was entirely foreseeable and could have been prevented.

"They didn’t take precautions, even though the risk was clear. That makes me feel as if they believed deaths were inevitable. It’s truly devastating," he said.

Lee also suggested he might visit a Posco E&C construction site in person. "Maybe I should go there myself," he said. "This type of backward, primitive accident must be eradicated permanently. I hope this year marks the beginning of the end of fatal workplace accidents in Korea."

Turning to Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon, Lee urged stringent enforcement of safety laws in workplaces.

"You should see yourself as a special forces unit tasked with protecting lives, and strictly crack down [on violations of industrial safety regulations]," he said.

When Kim responded that he would put his position on the line, Lee replied, "If there’s no real improvement after some time, you’ll have to follow through on that."

One Posco E&C worker was killed, and an excavator operator from a subcontractor suffered serious injuries, after a tunnel under construction for section 5-2 of the Shinansan Line collapsed in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi, on April 16. [YONHAP]

On Monday, a worker in their 60s died after being trapped in a drilling machine while working on a slope reinforcement project at Posco E&C’s Uiryeong Interchange site along the Hamyang–Ulsan expressway in South Gyeongsang.

The latest fatality occurred just two months after the Ministry of Employment and Labor conducted an on-site inspection at the company following a string of similar accidents, prompting questions about the effectiveness of current safety oversight.

The Cabinet meeting, which lasted about 80 minutes, was broadcast live for the first time in Korean presidential history.

Lee’s administration says it intends to make Cabinet discussions more transparent and accessible to the public.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
BY KIM JI-HYE [[email protected]]