Home Complaints database KTNC Watch and Samsung Heavy Industries Martin Linge Project Crane Accident Workers Support Team vs. Samsung Heavy Industries et al.
Complaint

KTNC Watch and Samsung Heavy Industries Martin Linge Project Crane Accident Workers Support Team vs. Samsung Heavy Industries et al.

Workers killed and injured in Korean shipyard crane accident

Date filed
20 March 2019
Keywords
Countries of harm
Current status
No resolution
Sector
NCP

Allegations

On 20 March 2019, two non-profits – the Samsung Heavy Industries Martin Linge Project Crane Accident Workers Support Team (Worker Support Team) and Korean Transnational Corporations Watch (KTNC Watch) – filed complaints against SAMSUNG Heavy Industries (SHI), TOTAL, TECHNIP, and EQUINOR at the Korean, French, and Norwegian National Contact Points.

On 1 May 2017, during construction of a Martin Linge oil platform at the Samsung Heavy Industries shipyard in South Korea, a Goliath crane and Jib tower crane collided. According to the official report by the Ministry of Employment and Labor, the accident killed six workers and injured 25 others. Moreover, 300 workers witnessed the accident, but have not received treatment for the trauma they have suffered. According to the complainants, an investigation agency found that just before the accident, Samsung HI had adopted an unusual and dangerous work method without first undertaking a risk assessment. The complainants assert that the lack of safety measures and inappropriate assignment of work constituted violations of the Korean Occupational Safety and Health Act and breaches of the General Policies, Disclosure, and Human Rights chapters of the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. The complainants assert that TECHNIP, leader of the project consortium and recipient of the construction contract, directly supervised the engineering procedures and failed to advise or order appropriate safety management measures, even though the change of construction method was unusual and dangerous. They argue that TOTAL, which operated the project at the time of the incident, did not ensure proper safety assessments were undertaken, while Equinor, the current operator, declined to disclose the investigation report undertaken by the project group after the accident, which might reveal more information about the accident’s cause.

The complainants are seeking mediation by the NCPs to help determine the breaches of the Guidelines that have occurred and to assist in their remediation.

Relevant OECD Guidelines

Outcome

On 25 June 2019, NCP Korea completed its initial assessment and accepted the case for further consideration. It was determined amongst the other NCPs that the Korean NCP would handle the case related to the Korean company while the Norwegian NCP will handle the issues raised with enterprises based in Europe, in collaboration with the French and United Kingdom NCPs.

On 26 October 2022, NCP Korea published its final statement, originally only in Korean but later also in English. Both parties reportedly accepted the NCP’s offer of good offices and engaged in mediation between November 2019 to June 2022, with some delay in meetings due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Because the parties were unable to reach an agreement, on 26 October 2022, the NCP concluded the complaint. It recommended that Samsung HI take steps to remediate any victims not yet included during the course of the investigation, seek out victims of past or future business activity, and ensure that the OECD Guidelines, OECD Due Diligence Guidance, and the ILO convention were taken into consideration in the company’s human rights due diligence processes.

The Korean NCP requested for Samsung HI to report back on the implementation of these recommendations within six months.

The complainants were deeply disappointed by the NCP’s final statement. Among other things, they raised concerns about the NCP’s failure to mention the responsibility of Samsung HI for the accident and that the NCP did not actually recommend any remedy for the victims.

More details

Defendant
Company in violation
Other companies involved
Complainants
Affected people
Other NCP's where the complaint was filed
Date rejected / concluded
26 October 2022

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