Hanwha Ocean to invest $1.5 bil. to prevent recurrence of worker deaths

Hanwha Ocean's shipyard on Geoje Island, South Gyeongsang Province / Courtesy of Hanwha Ocean By Park Jae-hyuk Hanwha Ocean announced, Wednesday, that it will invest 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion) over the next three years to help prevent industrial accidents at its shipyard and other facilities. The decision was made as lawmakers are considering summoning the shipbuilder’s executives to face the National Assembly's audit next month, due to a series of fatal industrial accidents at its shipyard on Geoje Island, South Gyeongsang Province, where four workers have been killed this year alone.

The company plans to increase its budget for a safer work environment from 321.2 billion won in 2023 to 350 billion won in 2024, 280 billion won in 2025 and 400 billion won in 2026. It will also make an additional investment of 846 billion won to establish a smart safety management system, replace worn-out equipment, conduct safety training, hire more safety managers and obtain an external agency’s safety ratings.



“After checking the safety of our facilities and listening to opinions from outside experts and our employees, we reached the conclusion that it is necessary to overhaul the entire safety management system,” Hanwha Ocean CEO Kim Hee-cheul said. Hanwha Ocean plagued by frequent fatal accidents 2024-09-11 16:53 | Companies Last week, a 41-year-old subcontracted worker died during an evening shift at Hanwha Ocean’s shipyard, after falling from the upper part of a ship, which was 32 meters above the ground. Between February and March, the Ministry of Employment and Labor carried out a special labor inspection of Hanwha Ocean, as two fatal industrial accidents occurred at its shipyard within just two weeks in January.

The company was slapped with a 100 million won fine due to safety violations uncovered during the inspection. Last month, a subcontracted worker in his 60s passed out at Hanwha Ocean’s shipyard in the daytime and died later on. The shipbuilder’s union attributed his death to the company’s insufficient measures to prevent heat-related illnesses.

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