Hyundai Motor non-regular worker's stroke recognized as work injury by court

In a significant victory for labor rights, a South Korean court has ruled in favor of a non-regular worker who suffered a stroke after just five months on the assembly line at Hyundai Motor's Ulsan plant. This decision overturns the denial of his industrial accident claim by the Korea Workers' Compensation & Welfare Service (KCOMWEL), highlighting a critical issue in how occupational illnesses are assessed in the country.

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The court overturned the denial of the claim for industrial accident and medical care benefits for Mr. K.

The worker, identified as Mr. K, experienced a stroke in March 2023, leading to paralysis on his left side. His claim was initially rejected by KCOMWEL, which failed to recognize a link between his work and his condition, even after an appeal. The case then proceeded to the administrative court, where the worker's plight gained attention.

Mr. K had only recently transitioned to production line work, previously holding positions in offices and service industries. The demanding nature of the Hyundai assembly line, requiring synchronization with other workers, coupled with constant exposure to noise from drills and a two-shift system that included night work, contributed to his deteriorating health. Notably, in the three weeks prior to his stroke, he worked six days a week, adding to the immense pressure of adapting quickly in an unstable employment situation.

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The court must consider the characteristics of line work, such as shift work and noise environment, in addition to working hours.

The court's ruling is particularly noteworthy because it moves beyond the conventional metric of working hours. While Mr. K's average weekly hours (43 hours 40 minutes over 12 weeks) did not meet the typical threshold for overwork-related deaths, the court considered his individual susceptibility to illness given the specific working environment. This nuanced approach acknowledges that factors like shift work, noise exposure, and the inherent pressures of assembly line tasks can uniquely impact a worker's health, regardless of total hours logged.

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KCOMWEL has often ignored court precedents in occupational disease cases, including the legal principle that the work-relatedness of a disease should be judged based on the physical condition of the worker in question, not an 'average person.'

Lawyers involved in the case have criticized KCOMWEL for frequently disregarding established court precedents, particularly the principle that occupational disease assessments should consider the individual worker's physical condition, not just a 'standard person.' This verdict serves as a crucial reminder for KCOMWEL to re-evaluate its assessment criteria and ensure a more equitable and humane approach to recognizing the occupational hazards faced by workers in demanding industrial settings.

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This ruling confirms the illegality of KCOMWEL's judgments and urges the agency to reconsider its own assessment standards.