Three serious accidents were reported by enterprises with fewer than 50 employees in the first week since the enforcement of workplace safety laws was expanded, South Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labor said Sunday. The ministry reported deaths at work at SMEs in Busan, Gangwon Province and Gyeonggi Province since the laws subjecting employers to penalties for fatal accidents were expanded to smaller businesses on Jan. 27. For instance, a male worker in his 50s died after being crushed

Han, a 30-year-old living in Seoul, was once a promising student. She entered Sungkyunkwan University in Seoul on a scholarship and secured a well-paying job at a large company upon graduation. However, the constant competition and long work hours eventually took a toll. Despite being promoted to assistant manager before her colleagues, Han started to experience burnout. "The cycle of competition just didn't end. I had to beat my colleagues to get promoted. I wasn't happy," H

The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Thursday unveiled a set of plans to overhaul a portion of Seoul city’s eight-lane highway, Olympicdaero, with a public park that covers a subterranean roadway by 2027. This proposal is part of a wider project to make the city more pedestrian-friendly. Currently, it is difficult to access Banpo Hangang Park on foot because it is blocked by Olympicdaero. People have to use a pedestrian flyover to reach the park by walking. “The plan is to create a p

Hundreds of businessmen running small and medium-sized companies around the country held a rally at the National Assembly on Wednesday, urging parliament to pass a revision bill to defer the enforcement of a workplace safety act. Participants in the rally were mainly from 17 business community groups, including the Korea Federation of SMEs, the Korea Federation of Micro Enterprise, and the Korea Food Service Industry Association, according to organizers. Two thousand officials from small and med

Expanded application of the workplace safety law is expected to have a substantial impact on the South Korean business community, as it holds employers with more than five workers legally responsible for deadly accidents. Concerns are growing as this change, which officially took effect Saturday, will cover 837,000 workplaces, including small neighborhood restaurants, bakeries, pubs, cafes and mom-and-pop stores. Regardless of the size of the businesses and their financial capabilities, under th

A Korean lawmaker fell victim to a brutal physical assault by a 15-year-old teenage assailant, who not only carried out the attack but repeatedly -- and incorrectly -- claimed immunity from legal consequences. The incident on Thursday has re-ignited concerns about the issue of juvenile crime and the legal immunity afforded to some teenagers. The law prohibits the punishment of individuals under the age of 14. People Power Party Rep. Bae Hyun-jin was beaten 15 times on the head in a 10-second att

The business community and President Yoon Suk Yeol conveyed their profound disappointment following unsuccessful parliamentary negotiations on extending the grace period for the country's workplace safety law for small businesses by an additional two years. Labor groups, on the other hand, have embraced the latest developments, viewing them as positive steps in ensuring enhanced worker safety standards. The workplace safety law, known as the Serious Accident Punishment Act is, set to be exp

A workplace safety law is set to be expanded to apply to small businesses with 50 employees or less from Saturday, as rival parties failed to reach an agreement Thursday on deferring the plan. The safety law holds employers liable for serious industrial accidents, and employers could face at least one year in prison or fines of up to 1 billion won ($749,000) in the event of a fatal workplace accident. The government had earlier granted a grace period for companies with fewer than 50 employees, w

A leading teachers' organization said Thursday that the government's plan to hire "dedicated investigators" to handle school bullying cases would be ineffective due to an inadequate payment system and unclear legal authority. “Looking at job postings for those dedicated investigators, their allowance is 300,000 ($224) to 400,000 won per case of school violence, and the amount of monthly salary they are expected to earn is only around 1 million won per month. The recru

A Seoul court on Wednesday sentenced a man to 20 years in prison for killing a pedestrian while driving under the influence of illicitly prescribed drugs. The 28-year-old driver, surnamed Shin, who ran over a woman while driving a Rolls-Royce in Apgujeong, Gangnam, Seoul in August 2023, was charged with murder via hit-and-run. The Seoul Central District Court sentenced the man to 20 years in prison on Wednesday. “The defendant caused the car accident after ignoring the doctor's instru

South Korea is bracing for a cold snap this week, with weather forecasts predicting a sharp plunge in temperatures. A cold wave advisory will take effect in central and northern areas including Incheon, Gyeonggi Province, and parts of Gangwon Province at 9 p.m. Sunday, according to the Korea Meteorological Administration. A cold wave advisory is issued when the lowest morning temperature is expected to fall below minus 12 degrees Celsius for more than two consecutive days, or when the temperatur

Prosecutors indicted a total of 32 individuals in connection with online murder threats between August and December 2023, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office said Sunday. Out of the 189 individuals referred to the public prosecutor's office on charges including attempted murder, intimidation and obstruction of justice, 32 have been formally indicted and are being held in custody. Most of those indicted had allegedly written online posts vowing to commit copycat crimes in the wake of a fata

From the launch of a new service that enables unlimited subway and bus access in Seoul to a water bus that transports passengers from Yeouido to Gangseo-gu in 30 minutes, 2024 is to be marked by a series of major transformations in the capital's public transportation services, Seoul's mayor said Wednesday. At a New Year's press conference, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said the "climate card," set to launch on Jan. 27, was the result of a new policy adopted to both mitigate pol

A Korean man in his 30s suspected of attacking a female Singaporean student in broad daylight last week was arrested by the police Tuesday. The suspect, whose name and age were being withheld as of Monday afternoon, is being accused of punching the student several times in the face at around 4 p.m. on Friday, according to the Dongdaemun Police Station. The victim was walking at a crosswalk in Hwigyeong-dong, Dongdaemun-gu in Seoul when she was attacked. Police said the suspect has been diagnos

The Korea Employment Information Service said Monday that it released the first issue of the KEIS e-Letter, an English newsletter on Korea's latest employment trends and labor market information, on Jan. 4. The KEIS is affiliated with the Ministry of Employment and Labor, and is in charge of collecting, analyzing and providing information related to employment, careers and jobs, supporting the advancement of employment services and running the employment information system. “This ne

The Seoul Western District Court on Friday ordered public broadcaster MBC to rectify its report on President Yoon Suk Yeol's alleged use of foul language during an informal exchange with then-Foreign Minister Park Jin in New York in September 2022. In response, MBC on Friday said "we will appeal immediately to correct the erroneous ruling of the first trial." The court issued the order in response to a lawsuit filed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which claimed that the video

Women who work long hours and have conflicting demands from family and work are more likely to have symptoms of depression, a study showed Thursday. A study in the Journal of the International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health suggested that such women were 35 percent more likely to have depressive symptoms compared to those with standard hours. In contrast, there was no significant difference in depression rates among male workers with or without long hours, even when the demand

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon met with Charlie Hill, Major League Baseball's vice president of international strategy, in Las Vegas on Tuesday, pledging the city’s full support to help the MLB globalize baseball and vowing plans to build a domed baseball stadium and convention center, as previously announced. The meeting took place on the sidelines of CES 2024, the world's largest technology show. Oh arrived in Las Vegas early Tuesday to host the Seoul Pavilion and promote Seoul’s

The Seoul Metropolitan Government on Tuesday announced a set of plans to deal with soaring cremation demand, including adding furnaces and providing extra manpower. These measures are a response to address a deepening shortage of crematorium services, according to the Seoul city government. Currently, the city of Seoul runs two municipal cremation facilities, including Seoul Memorial Park in Yangjae-dong and Seoul Municipal Funeral Home (Byeokje Crematorium) in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. At thos

Over 600,000 salaried workers in South Korea reported an annual additional income surpassing 20 million won ($15,200), aside from their regular salaries, according to data released by the National Health Insurance Service on Monday. According to NHIS data released by Rep. Choi Hye-young of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, the extra income of salaried workers came from bank interest, stock dividends and rental revenue. The number of salaried workers getting extra income consisted of