GS E&C CEO Huh Yoon-hong speaks during a press conference at Xi Gallery in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap
A worker death occurred on Tuesday at the site of GS E&C's incomplete apartment complex in Incheon, which is undergoing demolitions for reconstruction after an underground parking garage collapsed in April last year.
The latest accident has triggered doubts among consumers and investors over the construction firm's promise on Monday to regain the trust of customers.
According to the Ministry of Employment and Labor, a worker in his 50s died after the mini excavator he was operating collapsed while he was driving the machine up the stairs inside one of the apartment buildings under demolition.
The ministry is investigating whether GS E&C violated the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, given that the construction firm outsourced the demolition to a smaller company, which employed the driver.
The law stipulates that a company's CEO can be sent to jail if a serious worksite accident occurs when the company does not take sufficient safety precautions. Additionally, construction firms that violate the law can be banned from receiving orders for a certain period of time.
A day before the fatal accident, GS E&C held a press conference to disclose the new logo for its apartment brand, “Xi.”
The public has ridiculed the brand, saying that GS E&C's apartment buildings are “boneless” since it was revealed that the company's omission of rebar in multiple places caused last year's parking garage collapse, which fortunately resulted in no fatalities or injuries.
An excavator tears down a building, Tuesday, at the site of GS E&C's incomplete apartment complex in Incheon, where an underground parking garage collapsed in April 2023. Yonhap
During the first press conference since his appointment in October last year, GS E&C CEO Huh Yoon-hong emphasized the importance of restoring customer trust.
“I hope to prevent workplace accidents perfectly, but it is almost impossible in reality,” said the son of GS E&C's largest shareholder, Honorary Chairman Huh Chang-soo. “If we continuously gain the trust of customers and achieve satisfactory earnings for our shareholders, we will not go through a difficult time again.”
GS E&C is anticipating costs of 550 billion won ($395 million) for tearing down and rebuilding all 17 buildings for 1,666 households in the apartment complex, although it managed to circumvent business suspension orders by filing injunctions to invalidate the orders temporarily.
Even if the construction firm will avoid a business suspension order in the aftermath of the recent workplace death, it is still facing public criticism, with calls for the firm to focus more on safety management rather than refurbishing its brand logo.