SMEs mull court petition to delay Serious Accident Punishment Act

Kim Ki-moon, chairman of Korea Federation of SMEs. [Photo by Yonhap]

South Korea’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) industry has decided to file a constitutional petition if attempts to postpone the application of the Serious Accident Punishment Act fail at the upcoming National Assembly session.

“If the bill proposing a delay in the application of the Serious Accident Punishment Act for businesses with less than 50 employees is not addressed during the National Assembly plenary session on February 29, we have decided to file a constitutional petition,” said Kim Ki-moon, chairman of Korea Federation of SMEs (KBIZ), on Thursday.

Following its application to large enterprises, the Act has been in effect since January 27 for SMEs with fewer than 50 employees.

Currently, a bill is being proposed to suspend the enforcement of this law for small and medium-sized businesses.

However, it has encountered resistance in the plenary session from the opposition party and its passage remains pending. The final plenary session of the 21st National Assembly is slated for February 29.

According to Kim, consultations with numerous labor law experts and law firms led to the conclusion that there is a significant possibility of unconstitutionality in the current law.

He highlighted the difficulty in proving causation between a major accident and the business owner, as well as the excessive punishment imposed on the business owner.

“The Occupational Safety and Health Act has mandatory provisions and penalties, but the only one that is missing is the imprisonment for not less than one year provision, which is stipulated in the Serious Accident Punishment Act,” Kim said. “This is the worst toxic clause and is a provision that terrorizes SMEs and small business owners.”