▲ Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon (2nd from L) inspects a manufacturing facility in Incheon, west of Seoul, where identical types of accidents repeatedly occurred, on July 8, 2026. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, July 15 (Yonhap) -- The number of workers killed in industrial accidents hit a record low of 253 in the first half of the year, the labor ministry said Wednesday.

The reading represents an 11.8 percent drop from 287 in the same period last year, marking the sharpest on-year decline seen in the first half since record-keeping began in 2022, according to preliminary data from the ministry.

Deaths at workplaces employing fewer than 50 people decreased by 30 to a total of 146, while those at companies employing 50 or more dropped by four to 107.

By sector, the death toll in the construction industry fell 23.9 percent on-year to 105. Conversely, the manufacturing industry saw a rise of 37.3 percent to 92 fatalities.

Ministry officials attributed the rise in manufacturing deaths to major accidents this year, including a devastating blaze at Anjun Industrial Co.'s plant in the central city of Daejeon in March, which claimed the lives of 14 employees, and a blast at Hanwha Aerospace's Daejeon facility in June that killed five workers.

The ministry said it plans to reduce manufacturing deaths by conducting rigorous inspections of sites with a history of recurring fires or handling military-grade explosives.

It also warned of special inspections of companies where identical types of accidents recur.

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