Usage rate at sites worth 500 billion won or more reaches only 74.6%
Rep. Park Su-min calls for terminal inspection and clearer installation standards
The electronic card system introduced to transparently track construction workers' attendance has achieved a card issuance rate of 90 percent, yet actual usage remains below 75 percent, data showed. Even at large construction sites, usage rates hover around the national average, prompting calls to strengthen terminal installation and on-site management.
According to data submitted to People Power Party lawmaker Park Su-min of the National Assembly's Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor Committee by the Construction Workers Mutual Aid Association, the electronic card issuance rate at construction sites stood at 90.1 percent as of the end of August, while the actual usage rate was 74.5 percent — a gap of 15.6 percentage points.
Under the electronic card system, construction workers tag their cards on a terminal when entering and leaving a site, creating a record of their work history. The system was introduced to prevent actual working days from being omitted from retirement mutual aid reports and to curb wage theft.
The usage rate has gradually climbed from 70.6 percent in 2024 to 72.7 percent last year and 74.5 percent through August this year. However, the pace of improvement has been modest — gains of 2.1 percentage points last year and 1.8 percentage points this year.
A gap also emerged in the number of users. Of the 1,162,071 construction workers registered at electronic card-covered worksites between January and August this year, only 777,921 actually used the cards — leaving a discrepancy of 384,150 workers.
Large construction sites, where more systematic workforce management might be expected, showed no better performance. Worksites with project values of 500 billion won ($374 million) or more recorded a usage rate of 74.6 percent, just 0.1 percentage point above the overall average — and actually 1.7 percentage points lower than the 76.3 percent recorded at sites valued under 50 billion won.
Industry sources point to a shortage of terminals and poor maintenance as key factors dragging down usage rates. At sites with wide work zones and multiple entry points, insufficient terminal installation or delays in repairing broken devices lead workers to rely on manual records instead of card tagging. The prevalence of short-term and daily employment and lax on-site management are also cited as contributing factors.
"Starting with large construction sites, there is a need to check whether enough terminals are installed relative to the actual number of workers and to strengthen the association's management responsibilities — including establishing appropriate installation standards," Park said.
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