Business owners or executives in charge of management are obligated to prevent major disasters by faithfully implementing safety and health measures in accordance with the Severe Disaster Punishment Act, effective on January 27, 2022. The objective of...
Business owners or executives in charge of management are obligated to prevent major disasters by faithfully implementing safety and health measures in accordance with the Severe Disaster Punishment Act, effective on January 27, 2022. The objective of this study is to seek ways to effectively prevent major disasters in workplaces. To achieve the objective, this study examines the key provisions on the establishment and implementation of a safety and health management system within the Severe Disaster Punishment Act, and identifies practical issues and suggestions for improvement in its adoption to commercial real estate asset management field.
Commercial real estate asset management aims to maximize profit and increase the value of properties which are delegated by the owners or asset management companies by providing efficient operation and management of real estate assets. Within the asset management operation, facility management service such as technical maintenance, is subcontracted to facility management companies, so there is a hierarchical subcontracting relationship between an asset management company and a facility management company. Also their roles and responsibilities are distinct. Over the past five years (2017-2021), there have been 111 fatalities in accidents within the building management industry, with the majority (104, 93.7%) being older workers aged 50 and above. Specifically, accidents related to ladder use, vehicle collisions, and falls on stairs or corridors accounted for 47 deaths (42.3%). Implementing basic safety measures to address these risks would significantly contribute to accident prevention in workplaces, making the establishment and implementation of a safety and health management system through the enforcement of regulations more crucial than ever.
To identify issues that arise when implementing the safety and health management system prescribed in the Severe Disaster Punishment Act, this study conducted a survey on 91 asset management workplaces of Company A within the real estate asset management industry. Additionally, in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 middle managers responsible for safety and health management to gain a clearer understanding of the problems they face and to explore possible solutions.
The analysis revealed several issues. Firstly, there is a confusion in handling accidents due to the ambiguous terms related to major disasters, in multiple workplaces. There were several cases that discrepancy in between legal terminology and practical concepts, as well as a lack of guidelines, leads to subjective interpretations.
Secondly, there exists ambiguity in explaining the obligation to ensure safety and health. The Severe Disaster Punishment Act does not clearly specify the definition of "imminent danger," resulting in difficulties in preparing for and responding to it due to the ambiguity in the scope of the emergency response manual and risk assessment.
Thirdly, confusion arises from uncertainties regarding the responsible parties for preventive measures. Discrepancy in defining the responsible parties for safety and health assurance in hierarchical subcontracting relationships and difficulties in determining the responsible party for disaster prevention, caused an issue to set right responsible party.
Fourthly, there is a lack of understanding and proficiency in performing safety and health management tasks, a tendency towards formalistic management, and shortcomings in the criteria for assessing the implementation of the safety and health management system, highlighting the potential occurrence of severe accidents among older workers.
To suggest applicable solutions to these issues, the following improvement measures are proposed regarding the application of the safety and health management system prescribed in the Severe Disaster Punishment Act:
1) clarification of ambiguous concepts through legal revisions to ensure predictable operations;
2) development and promotion of effective safety and health programs and disaster prevention skills;
3) clear definition of roles and responsibilities in hierarchical subcontracting relationships; and
4) standardization of the safety and health management system and conducting regular inspections, ideally half annually.
This study contributes to suggest some solutions by examining the practical issues through workplace surveys and in-depth interviews regarding the establishment of the safety and health management system in the real estate asset management industry in accordance with the Severe Disaster Punishment Act. Also this study provides new insights and assists in establishing new judgment criteria for those interested in the establishment and implementation of the safety and health management system under the Act.