Major Industrial Accident Liability: Legal Risks Companies Must Rigorously Assess
What Is a Serious Industrial Accident?
A “serious industrial accident” is premised on an industrial accident as defined under Article 2(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. Accordingly, an incident that does not qualify as an industrial accident under that Act cannot be recognized as a serious industrial accident under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.
The Serious Accidents Punishment Act applies only when specific statutory requirements are met. The representative criteria are as follows:
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One or more fatalities;
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Two or more persons injured in the same accident who require medical treatment for at least six months; or
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Three or more persons diagnosed within one year with occupational diseases prescribed by Presidential Decree, such as acute poisoning caused by the same hazardous factor.
An important point to note is that the victims are not required to be “employees” in the strict sense. The Act covers all “workers” who provide labor, regardless of the contractual form, including subcontracting, outsourcing, or consignment arrangements.
In practice, accidents that frequently give rise to issues include falls, crushing or entrapment accidents, collapses, and overturning incidents. Even if an accident appears to be a simple safety incident on its face, it may still be classified as a serious industrial accident if the statutory requirements are satisfied.
While not every accident constitutes a serious industrial accident, the assumption that “this level of accident will be fine” can itself lead to significant legal risk.
Key Risk Areas for Companies and Executive Management
One of the most common misconceptions in serious industrial accident cases is the belief that liability ends at the level of on-site managers. In reality, investigations and trials focus on whether the business owner or executive management fulfilled their obligations to ensure safety and health under Articles 4 or 5 of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.
A particularly critical issue is the effectiveness of the safety management system. Even where safety manuals and internal regulations formally exist, failure to ensure that they function in practice can be evaluated as an adverse factor. If a safety and health management system exists only on paper, or if training and inspections are conducted in a merely formal or perfunctory manner, this may be deemed a failure to fulfill the statutory duty to secure safety and health under Article 4. In such cases, the existence of documentation alone can actually serve as unfavorable evidence demonstrating non-compliance.
Where a business owner or executive management violates Articles 4 or 5 and causes a serious industrial accident resulting in one or more deaths, they may be subject to imprisonment for at least one year or a fine of up to KRW 1 billion, or both. In addition, the corporation or institution itself may be fined up to KRW 5 billion (Articles 6 and 7 of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act).
Mandatory Actions Immediately After an Accident Occurs
In serious industrial accident cases, the company’s response in the immediate aftermath often determines the outcome.
Key considerations include:
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Organizing internal reporting and statement procedures;
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Separating internal investigations from external criminal investigations;
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Managing employee statements appropriately;
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Exercising caution when responding to the media, the Ministry of Employment and Labor, and the police.
When a serious industrial accident occurs, the business owner must immediately suspend the relevant work, evacuate workers from the site, and take all necessary measures to ensure safety and health. In addition, the occurrence of the accident must be reported without delay to the Minister of Employment and Labor.
Whether these initial measures were appropriate is a key factor in determining, during subsequent investigations and trials, whether executive management fulfilled their duty to secure safety and health. In practice, decisions made during the first few hours often shape the entire course of the investigation. It is essential to recognize that well-intentioned but ill-considered actions can, in some cases, increase legal liability rather than mitigate it.
Decent Law Firm’s Support – Post-Incident Response and Preventive Measures
Decent Law Firm does not limit its role in serious industrial accident cases to post-incident criminal defense.
Our support includes:
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Criminal investigation 대응 and defense against criminal liability;
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Review and diagnosis of safety management systems and legal risk exposure;
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Development, revision, and verification of implementation of manuals, training programs, and internal regulations;
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Advisory services aimed at preventing the recurrence of similar accidents.
The core of serious industrial accident 대응 lies not in one-time defensive measures, but in building a structure that can prevent recurrence. Even after an incident, Decent focuses on establishing sustainable compliance frameworks that meaningfully reduce the company’s long-term legal and operational burden.
Before it is too late, we encourage you to seek assistance from experienced professionals.
