Songpa-gu proves its safety-first credentials with top honor at national competition — workplace injury rate slashed from 1.42% to 0.42% in just one year
Songpa-gu in Seoul has been named the only metropolitan or basic local government in the country to receive recognition as an outstanding institution for civil servant disaster prevention, again cementing its reputation as a safety-first city.
The district office said it won the excellence award — an institutional commendation — at the Civil Servant Disaster Prevention Best Practices Competition, jointly organized by the Ministry of Personnel Management and the Public Officials Benefit Association.
The competition is designed to uncover and share exemplary cases of accident prevention and the promotion of a healthy workplace culture within the public sector. Entries are evaluated through a combined scoring process: written review by a panel of expert judges accounts for 50 percent of the final score, with an online public preference survey making up the remaining 50 percent.
A total of 65 public institutions and local governments nationwide took part in this year's competition, and Songpa-gu was the only local government among them to take home an award. Judges particularly praised the district for its effective disaster-prevention measures and its proactive, field-centered approach to workplace safety and health.
The district has long made the emotional well-being and safety of civil servants who handle public complaints and work in the field its top priority, taking the lead in building a practical disaster-prevention system.
A key factor behind the award was the district's development and operation of the "Songpa-gu disaster prevention model" — an integrated framework covering employee safety, health and complaint response. As a result, the district's workplace injury rate fell from 1.42 percent in 2024 to 0.42 percent in 2025, a drop of one full percentage point in a single year. The achievement drew wide praise for eliminating blind spots in public-sector safety and establishing a genuine culture of workplace safety.
The institutional commendation confirms Songpa-gu's standing as a local government with top-tier capabilities in disaster prevention and occupational safety management.
"This award is the fruit of every employee working together with one mind to create a safe working environment," district mayor Seo Gang-seok said. "A safe and healthy working environment for civil servants is what enables us to deliver high-quality administrative services to residents. We will continue to lead disaster-prevention efforts across the public sector and do our utmost to make Songpa a safe city."
seouldream01@heraldcorp.com
