Korea Zinc's Onsan smelter launches heat illness prevention campaign

Korea Zinc's Onsan smelter announced Thursday that it carried out a summer heat illness prevention safety campaign on Friday in partnership with its labor union. The campaign was designed to protect workers' health and safety amid a string of record-breaking heat waves, while raising awareness of heat illness prevention guidelines and encouraging a culture of compliance.

Through the campaign, management and the union jointly shared five basic heat safety guidelines: drinking sufficient cool, clean water; lowering body temperature using wind, shade or air conditioning; taking adequate rest when the perceived temperature reaches 31 degrees Celsius or above; using personal cooling gear; and reporting any worker who shows signs of heat illness or is suspected of suffering from it. Workers were also urged to make health protection their top priority on the job.

The Onsan smelter also prepared a special event to mark its 52nd anniversary. A coffee truck offering cool beverages — including iced coffee and iced tea — was stationed on-site for employees working through the intense heat. Heat illness prevention supplies and hand fans were also distributed so workers could take a moment to cool down and rest.

The smelter said it plans to expand its heat illness prevention efforts in anticipation of increasingly severe heat waves going forward.

Kim Seung-hyun, head of Korea Zinc's Onsan smelter, said he hopes the campaign will prompt all employees to again reflect on the basic heat safety guidelines and actively participate in heat illness prevention efforts. "We will continue to proactively manage heat waves and other industrial hazard risks to build a safe and healthy workplace where workers can do their jobs with peace of mind," he said.

Korea Zinc is also continuing efforts to expand heat-response rest facilities at the site. The Onsan smelter currently operates 28 shade shelters stocked at all times with cool drinking water. With an extended heat wave expected this year, the company is further strengthening its response by pursuing the installation of 22 additional container-type rest facilities equipped with air conditioning.

The smelter has also established detailed response protocols based on perceived temperature levels and is implementing protective measures calibrated to each heat alert stage, including flexible management of work and rest periods.

Meanwhile, Korea Zinc's Onsan smelter has been carrying out a range of corporate social responsibility activities, including a recent samgyetang-sharing event organized with the Ulsan chapter of the Korean Red Cross and the Korean Red Cross Volunteer Council's Ulju-gun chapter.