The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Wednesday it has deployed 613 dedicated safety personnel for the first time this year to oversee the well-being of participants in the government's senior employment program.

Assigned to implementing agencies and local governments, the workers handle the full range of safety management duties — including safety education for program participants, on-site inspections, management of safety equipment and follow-up measures in the event of accidents.

The ministry is also expanding a project that supports implementing agencies in complying with relevant regulations and providing safety training for staff, with the aim of raising safety standards at senior employment worksites.

Last year, the ministry ran a pilot project covering 100 agencies, identifying and addressing 3,395 hazardous or risky factors at senior employment sites.

This year, the project has been expanded to cover 200 agencies. Top-performing agencies will receive grants to improve their safety environments.

Starting this year, the ministry is also running a pilot safety rating system for senior employment projects, targeting 167 implementing agencies participating in the support project.

The safety rating system assesses the level of on-site safety management. Incentives will be offered to high-performing agencies to encourage voluntary participation.

The ministry plans to expand the dedicated safety workforce and analyze cases and data accumulated through the safety management support project and the safety rating system to develop a standard safety management model tailored to the characteristics of the senior employment program.

[Ministry of Health and Welfare]
[Ministry of Health and Welfare]

Choe Bong-geun, the ministry's director general for elderly policy, said "the safety of senior employment program participants is the most critical foundation for supporting a high-quality program," adding that the ministry would focus on "proactively preventing on-site risk factors and creating a safe working environment for seniors."


thlee@heraldcorp.com