Gyeonggi Province Conducts 'Safety and Health Management Officer Training' to Prevent Major Industrial Accidents

Gyeonggi Province Governor Choo Mi-ae instructed the province's safety and health management officers to strengthen on-site major industrial accident prevention activities, including direct workplace inspections and unannounced checks.

On the 21st, Gyeonggi Province conducted statutory occupational safety and health management officer training at the provincial government office.

At the event, Governor Choo Mi-ae, who participated in the training alongside others, stated, "I hope you will approach safety with action and determination to implement it. Regardless of budget, safety is the most fundamental aspect." She continued, "Of course, focusing on safety does not bring great praise or points, nor does it shine brightly. However, the reason the province exists is to organize and guide unglamorous work and complement it," she emphasized.

She added, "When I was Minister of Justice, I urged a temporary pause when the National Assembly rushed to pass the Serious Accident Punishment Act, saying that the purpose of safety is to ensure safety itself, not punishment. We must first prepare detailed manuals, then administratively check and supplement compliance with those manuals, and finally ensure strict punishment as a last resort. I also stated that establishing on-site safety management and supervision systems, as well as administrative systems to oversee them, must be a priority task," she explained.

Governor Choo stated, "Industrial accidents do not happen by chance; they result from our negligence and failure to invest resources in prevention. It is not too late now. I urge the executives here to examine workplaces more carefully, conduct unannounced inspections, and systematically implement appropriate measures tailored to field conditions," she added.

Approximately 70 people, including Governor Choo, provincial department heads and agency directors, attended the training. As statutory occupational training required under Article 32 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, it was designed to enhance the role of safety and health management officers and their on-site safety management capabilities.

The training was conducted by the Korea Industrial Safety Association, designated as an occupational training institution by the Ministry of Employment and Labor. Key content included the main provisions of the Serious Accident Punishment Act and the Occupational Safety and Health Act, major accident cases and prevention measures, risk assessment and safety and health management systems, the role of management officers, and on-site safety management.

Gyeonggi Province focused the training not only on completing statutory requirements but also on promoting a safety management culture where managers and workers together improve hazardous factors identified on-site, with life and safety as top priorities. Public institutions and government-funded organizations that are separate mandatory compliance entities under the Serious Accident Punishment Act were also given the opportunity to apply for and complete the training.

Gyeonggi Province plans to continue improving the safety and health management systems at provincial workplaces and will continue major industrial accident prevention activities to ensure that the province's safety and health management practices are disseminated to private sector workplaces.