2014 Key activities and Strategies

Jan. 2, 2014

As we begin our new journey of this year, allow me to introduce our major projects in preventing major occupational accidents.

First, we will strengthen our support at workplaces so that they can develop their own safety and health system.

According to relevant organizations in and out of Korea, the global economy is expected to show a modest recovery as conditions in general improve this year. Meanwhile, companies are pursuing convergence within and between industries to out-compete others, blurring the boundaries between industries. As they create new and novel values in the form of "hybrid patchworks," risk factors are changing in various ways.

Products and manufacturing sites are becoming more sophisticated and complex with the convergence with science and technology such as IT (Information Technology), BT (Bio Technology), CT (Culture Technology), and NT (Nano Technology), giving rise to new risk factors.

Undoubtedly, workers and the management are the ones who understand such newly emerging and changing risk factors. As such, it is of utmost importance to provide them with support so that they can conduct self-regulatory disaster prevention activities. In particular, the focus of our support should be on developing the capacity of workers and the management to strengthen the recently-implemented risk assessment system.

Second, we will establish a system to prevent and respond to major accidents and chemical accidents.

The risks of chemical substances are increasing with the emergence of new materials like Nano-materials and climate change as evidenced by global warming. Against this backdrop, we must strengthen our accident prevention programs regarding high-risk workplaces in the manufacturing and construction industries and establish a system where we manage all the workplaces that deal with harmful chemical substances in order to prevent chemical accidents.

Third, we will spare no effort to close the occupational safety and health gap to protect those vulnerable to occupational accidents.

Korea has achieved a remarkable and rapid economic growth. Because of the cohort effect or varying characteristics of different groups, this has also led to the bipolarization among different income groups and generations, and efforts are being made to narrow the gap.

The bipolarization is also found at industrial sites. Workers at small-sized workplaces and in the service industry, foreign workers, older workers, and female workers are still vulnerable in the field of occupational safety and health. It is time for us to make efforts to eliminate the occupational safety and health gap. Providing financial support for basic safety and health training is a good way to start our efforts.

Fourth, we will expand the occupational safety infrastructure.

Occupational safety policies now aims to not only prevent occupational diseases but also to promote health at workplaces through programs that eliminate health hazards for workers.

In line with this trend, we should do more to take occupational health to another level. To this end, we should conduct work environment monitoring, which provides a foundation for establishing occupational health policies, and establish additional health centers for workers to provide occupational health consultations.

Fifth, we will do our best to establish safety culture based on consensus andcommunication in line with "Government 3.0."

As the world is more dominated by "know-where" than "know-how," integrating a wide range of information and ideas about a product has become an essential strategy. In this context, "the economics of platform" refers to an economy where a variety of information and ideas come together in a platform to produce unexpected profits and synergy effects.

Safety culture can be secured only when all the members of society share thoughts and act together.

We should redouble our efforts to promote safety as an essential element of the culture of the society. We will undertake campaigns in partnership with workers, the management, citizens, and the government, as well as public?private partnership programs to raise awareness of safety. We will also provide a platform for two-way communication with stakeholders through our website and social network services to bring about synergy effects.

Thank you.

KOSHA President Baek, Hun-Ki