Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education Provides Advance Damages Compensation to School Food Service Workers Approved for Occupational Lung Cancer

The Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education (Superintendent An Min-seok) is implementing a plan to provide damages compensation without litigation procedures to school food service workers who have received occupational accident approval for lung cancer after working in school cafeterias.

On September 8, the Seoul Central District Court (Civil Division 33) ruled in a damages compensation lawsuit filed by nine cooks who worked in school cafeterias for over 12 years and received occupational accident approval for lung cancer that the education offices in Gwangju, South Jeolla, Busan, and North Gyeongsang provinces were liable for inadequate preventive safety measures, including insufficient ventilation facilities, and ordered compensation of 10 million won per plaintiff.

The Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education has decided to pursue proactive compensation to prevent food service workers in its jurisdiction with lung cancer occupational accidents from having to endure prolonged civil litigation over the same matter and to avoid wasting administrative resources.

The beneficiaries are school food service workers in the province who have received occupational accident approval for lung cancer, with compensation provided at approximately 10 million won per person based on the court ruling standards in other provinces and cities. The provincial education office plans to secure funding through supplementary budget allocations in the future.

As safety measures, the provincial education office plans to implement cafeteria ventilation system improvements, modernization of cooking environments, provision of protective equipment and enhanced occupational safety and health education, as well as lung cancer prevention health screenings and follow-up management for those with abnormal findings.

Superintendent An Min-seok of Gyeonggi Province stated, "It is the proper duty of the education office to extend support first so that food service workers who suffered illness while working for the healthy meals of children in school settings do not suffer again through legal disputes. Gyeonggi education will fulfill its responsibility to the end in creating safe cafeterias."