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Death of eighth Posco E&C worker in three years sparks condemnation, concern and fury

Published: 30 Jul. 2025, 18:01

Posco E&C CEO Jeong Hee-min and other executives bow their heads in apology ahead of issuing a statement at the company’s headquarters in Songdo, Incheon, on July 29 regarding a series of fatal workplace accidents. Earlier that morning, President Lee Jae Myung criticized the company during a Cabinet meeting, citing multiple industrial fatalities at Posco E&C sites. [YONHAP]

For the eighth time in less than three years, a worker has died at a Posco E&C construction site — the latest in a string of preventable deaths that have exposed deep cracks in Korea’s efforts to enforce its landmark workplace safety law.

Since the Serious Accidents Punishment Act took effect in January 2022, eight workers — most of them subcontractors — have died at sites managed by Posco E&C under preventable circumstances. The latest victim, a subcontract worker in his 60s, was caught in a drilling rig.

The deaths have intensified scrutiny of safety practices at one of the country’s largest builders, with critics and labor officials citing structural failures in oversight and accountability.

Latest fatality in South Gyeongsang

The most recent accident took place on Monday at the Uiryeong Interchange construction site on the Hamyang-Changnyeong Expressway in South Gyeongsang. The worker was killed after being caught in a drilling rig, a type of specialized construction equipment used for boring into rock and soil, according to authorities.

“Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, a signalman must be assigned during drilling rig operations and workers must be kept clear of the machine’s operating radius,” said a construction safety expert. “There needs to be a thorough investigation into whether safety protocols were followed.”

On Tuesday, the Ministry of Employment and Labor dispatched inspectors to the site to examine potential violations of both the Serious Accidents Punishment Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

One Posco E&C worker was killed, and an excavator operator from a subcontractor suffered serious injuries, after a tunnel under construction of the Sinansan Line collapsed in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi, on April 16. [GYEONGGI-DO FIRE SERVICES]

The recent death is only the latest in a series of serious accidents at Posco E&C sites.

In August 2023, an employee of the company fell to their death from a large formwork system, commonly known as a gang form, at an apartment construction site in Incheon’s Yeonsu District.

In early 2024, a worker in their 40s was crushed by a steel structure at a construction site in Seocho District, southern Seoul. Another fatal incident occurred in August that year, when a worker in their 30s was electrocuted at a construction site in eastern Seoul’s Gangdong District.

Three months later, a pedestrian walkway roof collapsed at a redevelopment site in southern Seoul’s Songpa District, burying three people, including a subcontractor employee. That worker, who had been transported to the hospital in cardiac arrest, died at the end of the year.

In January of this year, a worker in their 50s working for a subcontractor died after falling at an apartment construction site in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang.

Then, in April, a tunnel under construction for the Sinansan subway line in Gyeonggi collapsed, killing one worker. In the aftermath of that incident, Posco E&C issued a public apology and vowed to strengthen its safety management system to prevent similar tragedies.

From 2019 to 2021, six more workers lost their lives at the company’s construction sites.

The death toll underscores a broader safety crisis in Korea’s construction sector. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, 1,211 workers have died and 30,340 have been injured in construction-related accidents over the past five years — an average of 242 deaths annually.

The most common cause of death is "falling," accounting for 51.4 percent, followed by "being struck or crushed” at 18.2 percent, “blunt force trauma” at 10 percent, and “being caught in equipment” at 5.3 percent.

The eight fatal accidents at Posco E&C since 2022 reflect this pattern, with three cases each involving crushing and falling, one from being caught in machinery, and one electrocution.

President Lee Jae Myung listens to Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon on industrial safety measures at a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on July 29. [YONHAP]

'Unacceptable'

On Tuesday, Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon denounced the repeated fatalities at Posco E&C sites, despite the company’s high standing in the industry.

“It is unacceptable for a major builder with the seventh-highest construction capacity [In Korea] to keep having primitive accidents,” Kim said.

“The fact that another serious accident has happened even after the company was placed under enhanced oversight three times points to fundamental problems in safety management at the headquarters and CEO level," he added.

Following Kim’s remarks, Posco E&C CEO Jeong Hee-min released a statement of apology.

“We will reassess all latent risks to prevent similar incidents and build a new safety system to ensure that workers who come to earn a living can return home safely,” Jeong said.

Later that day, the Labor Ministry announced that it would launch unannounced on-site inspections at Posco E&C’s headquarters and 65 construction sites nationwide. The company responded by suspending all construction work indefinitely until it could ensure safety standards.

Some industry professionals questioned the effectiveness of inspections at suspended sites.

“What’s the point of unannounced inspections if the sites aren’t operating?” said one construction expert who requested anonymity. “Rather than performative inspections, the focus should be on thorough investigations, accountability, and real safety reforms.”

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