Minister Kim Young-hoon of the Ministry of Employment and Labor visited the Incheon Environment Corporation, a local public corporation where three workers have died in accidents this year alone, and said on the 2nd that it was "absolutely unacceptable."
Earlier, on the 30th of last month, at a sewage treatment plant of the Incheon Environment Corporation, a subcontracted worker died after the cover of a reservoir broke during a machine room floor cleaning operation and the worker fell inside. The reservoir where the accident occurred was reportedly 5–6 meters deep. Two months before that, on Jul. 7, at the Incheon Environment Corporation, two subcontractor workers died from suffocation while conducting a manhole survey in Incheon's Gyeyang District.
After the July accident, the Minister received a report on the Incheon Environment Corporation's measures to improve safety and health. He then called for identifying the fundamental causes of the repeated accidents and preparing measures to prevent recurrence. He instructed the head of the Middle Regional Employment and Labor Office to conduct a strict investigation into the two accidents and hold those responsible to account.
The Minister said, "It is absolutely unacceptable that accidents have repeatedly occurred at a public institution that has a duty to lead on safety," adding, "The government plans to take strict action on this accident in accordance with the law and principles."
He said, "I hope Incheon City and the Incheon Environment Corporation will fundamentally redesign their safety and health management systems so that such unfortunate accidents never happen again."