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Busan Metropolitan City Delivers Cooling Kits to Shipbuilding Subcontractor Workers to Help Prevent Heat-Related Illnesses During Extreme Summer Heat

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Busan Metropolitan City, led by Mayor Chun Jae-soo, announced that it will hold a cooling kit presentation ceremony today, August 11, at 3:50 p.m. in the Convention Room on the fifth floor of the Busan Employment Welfare Plus Center in Busanjin-gu, together with the Busan Regional Employment and Labor Administration, headed by Kim Jun-hwi, and the Busan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, chaired by Yang Jae-saeng. The event is intended to help prevent heat-related illnesses among workers at local shipbuilding subcontractors.

The ceremony will be attended by representatives from the Jobs and Labor Division of Busan Metropolitan City and the Regional Cooperation Division of the Busan Regional Employment and Labor Administration, officials from five prime contractors including SB Sunbo and their subcontractors, and local employment experts.

On the day of the event, Busan Metropolitan City will provide 1,700 cooling kits worth a total of KRW 51 million to approximately 1,700 workers at local shipbuilding subcontractors. The kits are specifically designed for use at worksites during extreme summer heat.

Because shipbuilding operations frequently involve outdoor work as well as work in high-temperature and confined spaces, on-site workers are particularly vulnerable to heat-related illnesses during periods of extreme heat. To help ensure a safe and healthy working environment, the kits include cooling arm sleeves, cooling towels, ice cooling patches, cooling spray, and other items.

The support will cover approximately 1,700 workers at subcontractors affiliated with seven prime contractors, based on employment insurance enrollment records and including foreign workers. The supplies are scheduled to be delivered in bulk to all eligible subcontractors during August.

The cooling kit support program is part of the Busan Shipbuilding Industry Regional Win-Win Gap Reduction Support Project, which Busan Metropolitan City launched this year.

The project is designed to promote the sustainable growth of the shipbuilding and marine equipment industries, key industries in the region, while attracting and retaining skilled workers. It also seeks to address the dual structure of the labor market by narrowing wage and welfare disparities between prime contractors and subcontractors and improving working conditions.

As of the end of July, the project had supported the retention of 57 newly hired shipbuilding workers and 208 skilled long-term employees. A total of 36 companies are receiving support to improve workplace safety conditions, 30 companies are receiving support to improve work and rest facilities, and 1,126 workers are participating in welfare programs covering expenses such as vacation costs and health checkups.

Busan Metropolitan City is also promoting on-site communication and cooperation through a variety of mutually beneficial programs involving both prime contractors and subcontractors.

On July 15, six prime contractors, including SB Sunbo, and 65 subcontractors participated in a collaborative event marking the first of the traditional midsummer days. On July 24, HJ Shipbuilding & Construction and its subcontractors operated a collaborative coffee truck event marking the second midsummer day, with a total of 2,800 workers taking part. The events provided opportunities for workers from prime contractors and subcontractors to take breaks and communicate together.

In the second half of the year, Busan Metropolitan City plans to strengthen welfare support in the highly preferred sports and cultural sectors to help narrow cultural and welfare disparities affecting subcontractor workers.

The city plans to boost worker morale by supporting attendance at professional sporting events for subcontractor workers and their families and by offering tailored cultural and welfare programs, including local performances, exhibitions, and movie screenings.

Busan Metropolitan City will continue to foster a culture of mutually beneficial cooperation between prime contractors and subcontractors throughout the local shipbuilding industry while supporting improved working conditions for subcontractor workers and the sustainable growth of the shipbuilding industry.

Kim Ki-hwan, Assistant Mayor of Digital Economy Office, said, “We hope these cooling kits will help workers stay safer on the job, even amid difficult working conditions caused by extreme heat.”

He added, “We expect that small changes at worksites achieved through mutually beneficial cooperation will improve workers’ lives and ultimately lead to greater corporate productivity and renewed vitality in the local economy.”