Circumstantial evidences were confirmed that SeAh Changwon Special Steel, a leading Korean special steel maker affiliated to SeAh Group gave the work instructions to the in-house subcontract workers and monitored their attitudes in work. SeAh Changwon Special Steel located in Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province also seemed to have involved in the personnel matters of the in-house subcontract workers like the change of work assignment. The Ministry of Employment and Labor(MOEL) is reportedly to conduct a labor inspection into the company sooner or later to find out whether or not the company used the dispatched workers illegally.
The Labor Today(www.labortoday.co.kr) on November 5 obtained dozens of recorded files, work logs, text messages and photos which show circumstantial evidences of illegal use of dispatched workers by SeAh Changwon Special Steel from an employee only surnamed Park who has been hired by an in-house subcontractor firm to SeAh Changwon Special Steel since June last year. During the period, he has been transferred three times before his fourth position assignment in the rolling grinder part on October 8.
He insisted that "he was unfairly transferred to the other work assignment when the company knew that it was him who filed an application with the MOEL to conduct a labor inspection on the illegal use of dispatched workers against the company and filed an application for the approval of an industrial accident compensation."
On October 5, the MOEL issued a correction order to the subcontractor firm where Park has been hired in violation of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. On September 28, Park got his shin injured while going up the stairs to the operation room in the plant. He applied for the industrial accident compensation benefits and with the approval of an industrial accident he has been under medical treatment for 21 days from the day of the accident. During his medical treatment, he filed a request with the MOEL to inspect the workplace for which the MOEL issued a correction order to the subcontractor firm. On August 28, Park also filed an application with the MOEL to investigate the illegal use of dispatched workers against SeAh Changwon Special Steel.
The MOEL plans to conduct a labor inspection into SeAh Changwon Special Steel and the subcontractor firm to examine the illegal use of dispatched workers before long. A related labor official said that "SeAh Changwon Special Steel was subject to a regular labor inspection as scheduled before and the subcontractor firm was also included due to the request for a labor inspection." He added that "as a comprehensive inspection on the sites is required to determine the raised issue, it is difficult to confirm at this moment if the recorded files submitted by Park will become evidences to prove the illegality."
A related manager of SeAh Changwon Special Steel refuted the allegations, saying that "the labor inspection has been planned before and there was no intervention whatsoever like the work instruction to the subcontractor firm concerned," adding that "Park's allegations are groundless."
reported by Yang Ou-ram
translated by Kim Sung-jin