World · East Asia & Pacific · 16 hrs ago
South Korean court acquits company head over worker's fatal repair accident
A 37-year-old cargo-handling worker died while repairing a towing tractor at a workshop in Incheon, South Korea, in April 2022.
The worker was checking for an oil leak near a rear wheel while another worker repaired the tractor’s air conditioning.
When the engine was switched off, the wheel turned back into position and trapped the worker between the wheel and the vehicle body.
An Incheon court gave the company’s safety manager a six-month prison sentence, suspended for one year, and gave the work supervisor a six-month sentence, also suspended for one year.
The company was fined 50 million won under occupational safety law, but the company head was acquitted under the Serious Accidents Punishment Act.
The court said the company had established safety procedures, including a rule against checking between the wheel and body while the engine was on, but site managers had failed to put the system into practice.
A South Korean court acquitted an aviation cargo-handling company’s chief executive of violating the Serious Accidents Punishment Act over a worker’s fatal accident.
The worker, aged 37, was crushed by a towing tractor’s rear wheel while carrying out repair work in Incheon in 2022.
The court said the company had established a safety management system, but that on-site managers had failed to implement it.
A safety and health manager received a six-month prison sentence, suspended for one year, and a work team leader received a six-month jail term, also suspended for one year.
The company was fined 50 million won for violating the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
- Who
- A 37-year-old aviation cargo-handling worker was killed. The company chief executive was acquitted, while two on-site managers received suspended sentences.
- What
- The worker was crushed by a towing tractor’s rear wheel during repairs. The court acquitted the chief executive of a Serious Accidents Punishment Act violation.
- When
- The accident happened on April 26, 2022. The court ruling was reported on November 8, 2026.
- Where
- At the company’s repair shop in Jung District, Incheon, South Korea.
- Why
- The tractor’s rear wheel returned to its aligned position when the engine was switched off, crushing the worker, who was working between the wheel and the vehicle body. The court said the company had a safety system, but on-site managers failed to carry it out.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
A worker was fatally crushed while repairs were being carried out on a towing tractor at a company repair shop in Incheon.
A court acquitted the company chief executive of a Serious Accidents Punishment Act violation and imposed suspended sentences on two on-site managers.
- Worker’s age
- 37
- Accident date
- April 26, 2022
- Accident location
- Company repair shop, Jung District, Incheon
- Safety and health manager’s sentence
- Six months in prison, suspended for one year
- Work team leader’s sentence
- Six months in jail, suspended for one year
- Company fine
- 50 million won for violating the Occupational Safety and Health Act
What people are saying
The company appears to have fulfilled its duty to identify risk factors by establishing procedures to directly identify foreseeable risks at the site and set safety rules.
It was closer to a problem in which the on-site management line, including the safety and health manager, failed to implement an existing system concretely.
B should have checked the victim’s location or told him that the engine was going to be switched off, but did neither.