369 foreign workers killed in industrial accidents over 4.5 years; construction and manufacturing account for 81%

A total of 369 foreign workers died in industrial accidents in South Korea over the four and a half years from 2022 through the first quarter of this year.

Democratic Party lawmaker Shin Jeong-hun, a member of the National Assembly's Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor Committee representing Gwangju, Naju and Hwasun in South Jeolla Province, analyzed data submitted by the Ministry of Employment and Labor. He found that the death toll from industrial accidents among foreign workers stood at 85 in 2022, 85 in 2023, 102 in 2024, 77 in 2025 and 20 in the first quarter of this year, totaling 369. The figures are based on industrial accident compensation approval data from the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service.

By industry, construction accounted for the largest share with 194 deaths (52.6%), followed by manufacturing with 105 (28.5%), other businesses with 45 (12.2%), agriculture with 11 (3.0%) and forestry with 6 (1.6%).

Construction and manufacturing alone claimed 299 lives, representing 81.0 percent of the total.

By accident type, falls were the leading cause with 140 deaths (37.9%), followed by entrapment with 56 (15.2%), being crushed or overturned with 31 (8.4%), being struck by objects with 28 (7.6%), fires with 27 (7.3%), collisions with 24 (6.5%) and collapses with 24 (6.5%).

"Life and safety are issues that cannot be deferred over interministerial disagreements, so we must draw up an integrated support roadmap," Shin said. "The policy paradigm for foreign labor must shift away from 'how many workers to bring in' and toward 'how to utilize, protect and develop them into skilled workers.'"