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Chemicals Convention, 1990 (No. 170) - Republic of Korea (RATIFICATION: 2003)

The Committee notes the observations of the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU) and the Government’s reply thereto, both received with the Government’s report on 4 September 2014.

Article 4 of the Convention. National policy on safety in the use of chemicals at work. The Committee notes that in 2009, the Occupational Safety and Health Policy Deliberation Committee was disestablished and its functions absorbed by the Deliberation Committee on Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance and Prevention, set up by virtue of section 8 of the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act. It also notes that an expert committee on occupational safety and health is to be established within this Deliberation Committee for the purposes of addressing safety and health issues in the field of chemical substances. The Committee requests the Government to provide further information on the composition, role and functions of the Deliberation Committee on Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance and Prevention and its expert committee, including information on measures taken to formulate, implement and periodically review a coherent national policy on safety in the use of chemicals at work, in consultation with the most representative organizations of employers and workers.

Article 7. Labelling and marking of chemical substances. Article 8. Chemical safety data sheets. Article 9. Responsibilities of suppliers. The Committee notes that, according to the FKTU, some businesses misuse section 41.2 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, which allows for employers to not indicate, in the material safety data sheet they are required to draw up, and post in the workplace certain chemical substances which are considered trade and business secrets, and, under this pretext, do not provide information on harmful chemical substances to their workers. The FKTU calls for new regulations to restrict the withholding of information which is necessary to the protection of the workers’ health. In its report, the Government replies that such derogations are limited and eliminated through the strengthened implementation of the statutory requirements applicable. In this connection, the Government indicates that no derogation is granted for chemicals which might cause serious harm to the workers’ health and that information withheld only concerns the components and contents of chemical substances while information on risks and possible harm must always be included. The Committee requests the Government to provide further information on the application in practice of Articles 7, 8 and 9 of the Convention, in particular concerning the criteria applied to strike a balance between protection of business secrets and the need to ensure the safe use of chemical substances in the workplace as well as the obligations of employers in this regard.

Article 19. Responsibility of exporting States. In reply to the Committee’s previous comment, the Government indicates that the export of banned chemical substances is strictly prohibited and that information regarding any ban on manufacturing and use is made available to importing States in the material safety data sheets (MSDS) which must contain a specific mention in this regard. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether MSDS must also contain the reasons for the total or partial prohibition of these chemical substances and to provide information on the manner in which MSDS are made available to importing States.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that in 2012, for the first time since the introduction of MSDS and warning labels, inspections were conducted in all undertakings subject to the relevant regulations and that such visits revealed a high rate of non-compliance. In 2012, labour inspectors carried out controls in 684 workplaces, detecting violations in 509 of them (74.4 per cent) and imposing 1,325 fines, while in 2013, 660 workplaces were inspected, revealing infringements to the regulations in 416 of them (63 per cent) and leading to the imposition of 784 fines. The Committee also notes the Government’s intention to remedy the situation through guidance to employers and continuing inspection visits. The Committee requests the Government to provide additional information on the types of infringements detected, on measures taken to address them and on the results obtained, and to continue to provide information on the application in practice of the Convention.