SEOUL — South Korea's business community has strongly protested the passage of a controversial amendment to the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA), which introduces heavy financial penalties for workplace fatalities and broadens workers' rights to halt work.

The National Assembly passed the revision bill during a plenary session with 161 votes in favor, 52 against, and 9 abstentions, out of 219 registered lawmakers. The newly adopted legislation targets companies with severe industrial accidents, mandating administrative fines of up to 5% of operating profit for businesses that record three or more worker deaths within a single year. For companies where calculating operating profit is difficult, a fine of up to 3 billion KRW can be levied. 

Severe Backlash from Management

Immediately following the vote, the Korea Enterprises Federation (KEF) issued an official statement criticizing the new standards as "unrealistic and excessive," warning that they fail to reflect actual corporate operating environments.

"For major corporations, this could mean astronomical fines, while for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), it threatens their very survival," the KEF stated.
The business association emphasized that despite consecutive rollouts of stringent punitive laws in recent years—including the total revision of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the enactment of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act—ex post facto punishment has shown limited effectiveness. Introducing another heavy economic penalty on top of existing frameworks constitutes double regulation and does little to fundamentally prevent accidents, according to the KEF. 

Ambiguous Criteria for Work Stoppages

Management has also raised red flags over provisions that ease the threshold for work stoppages. Under the amended law, workers can demand work halts not only when there is an immediate danger, but also when there is a perceived risk of danger. 

The KEF pointed out that vague legal criteria will likely trigger frequent friction, industrial site confusion, and institutional abuse due to subjective and arbitrary interpretations by stakeholders. 

"While securing workers' lives and safety is paramount, the lack of clear guidelines will only amplify confusion on the ground," the KEF noted. The organization urged lawmakers to shift away from legislation focused solely on punishing business owners and instead focus on rational legislative support to build practical safety management capabilities.

Additional Provisions

Beyond financial penalties and work stoppage criteria, the revised act includes provisions allowing the Minister of Employment and Labor to request the revocation of business registration for sites that experience repeated major accidents following multiple prior business suspension orders.

As the law takes effect, the business community is calling on the government to minimize side effects by formulating clear subordinate statutes and implementation guidelines.

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