The number of workers who died in industrial accidents in South Korea through the third quarter of this year fell to the 360s, the lowest level since the government began compiling the data. The decline was driven by sharp drops in deaths at small workplaces with fewer than five employees, long seen as a blind spot for safety enforcement, and in the construction industry.
A total of 366 workers died in accidents during the first three quarters of this year, down 91, or 19.9%, from a year earlier, according to data on fatal accidents subject to investigation released by the Ministry of Employment and Labor on the 20th. The number of accidents fell 22.3% to 342 from 440 over the same period. It is the first time cumulative third-quarter deaths have fallen into the 300s since the ministry began publishing the data in 2022.
The drop was most pronounced at small workplaces considered safety blind spots. Deaths at workplaces with fewer than 50 workers, or construction projects worth less than 5 billion won, totaled 223, down 52, or 18.9%, from a year earlier. At the smallest workplaces — those with fewer than five workers, or projects worth less than 500 million won — deaths plunged 24.8% to 103 from 137, a drop of 34. The ministry attributed the decline to preventive enforcement that involved visiting high-risk sites one by one, such as roofing jobs.
Construction, which accounts for about half of all workplace deaths each year, also saw a steep decline. Deaths in the industry fell to 150, down 60, or 28.6%, from a year earlier. By type of accident, falls — the largest single category of workplace deaths — dropped 37.7% to 124 from 199, a decline of 75. Deaths among foreign workers fell 20% to 48 from 60.
Manufacturing was the exception. Deaths rose 10.9% to 132 from 119, driven by major fires. In March, a fire at Anjeon Industrial, an auto parts plant, killed 14 people. In June, an explosion at Hanwha Aerospace's Daejeon plant, a defense facility, killed five.
The ministry plans to step up enforcement through the end of the year, focusing on workplaces at risk of fire and explosion. "Some see this as an illusion created by the construction downturn, but we assess it as a policy-driven prevention effect that goes beyond economic cycles," said Ryu Hyun-chul, head of the ministry's Occupational Safety and Health Headquarters. "This is the result of aggressive preventive work by frontline inspectors and close cooperation with local governments and the private sector."