Gyeonggi Province Introduces 'Electronic Card System' at Construction Sites...Enhanced Fair Culture and Worker Rights Protection Expected

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Jang Kyung-hee] To protect construction workers' rights and establish fair construction culture—addressing issues such as wage arrears at construction sites, guaranteeing prevailing wage rates, and preventing illegal employment of foreign workers—Gyeonggi Province is promoting the introduction of the 'Construction Worker Electronic Card System' at government-funded construction projects.

Governor Lee Jae-myung of Gyeonggi Province, Chairman of the Board Song In-hoe of the Construction Workers' Mutual Aid Association, and Bank President Ji Sung-gyu of KEB Hana Bank signed a 'Business Agreement on the Introduction and Operation of the Construction Worker Electronic Card System' at the Gyeonggi Provincial Government on the 1st.

Approximately 10 officials, including Kim Myung-won, Vice Chair of the Construction and Transportation Committee of the Gyeonggi Provincial Council, attended the agreement ceremony.

The main contents of the agreement include: ▲Designation and operation of workplaces applying the electronic card system ▲Sharing and managing construction worker information ▲Information exchange on operation and statistics of the electronic card system ▲Matters necessary for enhancing worker welfare, etc.

The 'Electronic Card System' is a system that records attendance and departure automatically when workers tag their electronic card—in the shape of a check card or credit card—on a terminal installed at construction site entrances, with records automatically transmitted to the Construction Workers' Mutual Aid Association's 'Electronic Workforce Management System' to manage working days and related information.

By utilizing a systematic electronic management system, it is expected to make significant contributions to protecting construction workers' rights, including preventing wage arrears, accurately accumulating retirement benefit contributions, managing construction worker careers, and ensuring payment of appropriate wages.

Additionally, since electronic cards are issued only to domestic workers or legally employed foreign workers, it is expected to prevent illegal foreign worker employment and enable rapid response in case of safety accidents through real-time management of work status.

In particular, by linking the Construction Workers' Mutual Aid Association's 'Electronic Workforce Management System' with the Province's 'Payment Confirmation System,' transparency in payment can be enhanced through cross-checking labor cost claims and worker attendance records.

Starting this month with four workplaces—including new office building construction projects and road widening and water pipe expansion projects—the Province plans to implement the system across all Gyeonggi Province and affiliated agency projects with a contract value of 500 million won or more and a remaining construction period of two years or longer by year-end.

The Gyeonggi Provincial Council's Construction and Transportation Committee pledged to contribute to the establishment of the system through legislative support, including ordinances.

Governor Lee Jae-myung stated, "The most important thing is to secure fairness at construction sites," and added, "Gyeonggi Province is attempting new approaches to address various issues at construction sites, so we ask for cooperation and support from related agencies going forward."