Pact signed with Fair Trade Commission, specialty contractors association

Co-growth fund, safety support to be expanded

The Korea Fair Trade Commission held a construction industry co-growth and fair trade signing ceremony at the Specialty Construction Hall on May 28. [Daewoo Engineering]
The Korea Fair Trade Commission held a construction industry co-growth and fair trade signing ceremony at the Specialty Construction Hall on May 28. [Daewoo Engineering]

Daewoo Engineering is accelerating efforts to spread a culture of mutual cooperation and fair trade across the construction industry.

According to industry sources Thursday, Daewoo Engineering attended a "Construction Industry Co-Growth and Fair Trade Agreement" ceremony on May 28, signing a pact with the Korea Fair Trade Commission and the Korea Specialty Contractors Association. The three parties agreed to build a cooperative framework aimed at establishing fair order in general and subcontract transactions, improving unfair practices and protecting subcontractors.

The agreement covers six areas: prompt payment and abolition of retention money, improvement of unfair contract terms, settlement of the subcontract payment indexing system, adjustment of supply prices during emergencies, establishment of a subcontract dispute resolution body, and formation of a public-private consultative body.

Daewoo Engineering said it has already been implementing most of the agreement's provisions and has continuously pursued a range of support activities to foster co-growth with partner companies.

Since 2012, the company has operated a co-growth fund to ease the financial burden on partner firms. This year, the fund stands at 14 billion won (approximately $9.2 million).

To strengthen safety management capabilities among partner companies, Daewoo Engineering subsidizes dedicated safety personnel wages and safety consulting to help build occupational health and safety systems. The company also runs a range of co-growth programs — including contributions to a mutual cooperation fund, support for improving partners' safety, health and welfare, and ESG management consulting and assessment — to secure a sustainable foundation for shared growth.

Daewoo Engineering has also held an annual "Outstanding Partner Co-Growth Forum" since 2007 to promote mutual growth and spread a culture of cooperation with partner firms. At this year's forum, the company shared plans to introduce a "safety rating system" that would award bid preference points to partner companies with strong safety management records, underscoring its commitment to building a safety-centered cooperative framework.

"This agreement is a meaningful step toward spreading a fair trade culture within the construction industry and embedding the subcontract payment indexing system on the ground," a Daewoo Engineering official said. "We will continue to expand practical co-growth activities — including operating the co-growth fund and providing safety and health support — to take the lead in building a construction industry ecosystem where we grow together with our partners."


lucky@heraldcorp.com