Labor ministry opens subsidies for rest areas at small building sites

South Korea's labor ministry said Monday that the Construction Workers Mutual Aid Association had begun accepting applications for a program to improve rest facilities at small and mid-sized construction sites, with up to 5 million won ($3,725) available per site.

The program targets sites with total construction value below 10 billion won ($7.45 million) where work will continue for at least six months beyond April 1, 2027. Such sites make up 86.4 percent of the 54,377 workplaces registered with the association for retirement contributions, or 46,994 sites.

Small sites often have the rest areas required under the Occupational Safety and Health Act but lack conveniences such as heating and cooling equipment, and less of the industrial safety and health budget is set aside for welfare facilities than at large construction projects.

Grants are scaled by project size: up to 2 million won ($1,490) for sites under 1 billion won ($744,934), 3 million won ($2,235) for sites under 5 billion won ($3.72 million) and the full 5 million won for those under 10 billion won. The total budget is 200 million won ($148,987).

The money can be used for containers fitted out as rest areas, wall-mounted air conditioners and heaters, refrigerators, hot and cold water dispensers, desks, chairs and simple beds. Sites under 1 billion won can use the grants for rental costs, while larger sites can use them to buy or rent equipment.

Applications will be ranked by the rate of electronic-card use from the start of construction through the end of August 2026. Remaining construction periods and project size also count toward the ranking, with longer schedules and smaller projects preferred.

Applications will be taken online through the association's Construction e-um system, QR codes and a Naver form from Oct. 19. Questions can be directed to its welfare business department at 02-519-2092.

"Through this support, we expect that construction workers at small and mid-sized sites, who sweat in poor working conditions, will be able to have a safe place to rest," said Chang Geon, chairman of the association. "We will continue to identify blind spots in the working environment of construction workers and provide support so that they can feel improvements in their welfare."