Labor welfare agency sends skilled staff to fix up homes of vulnerable households

The labor ministry said Wednesday that the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service sent its facility volunteer corps to low-income households to inspect electrical wiring and replace aging lighting with energy-efficient LEDs.

The corps, staffed by employees with professional qualifications and field experience in electrical, fire-safety and construction work, checked distribution panels, circuit breakers and power outlets at each home, repaired hazards on the spot and swapped old fixtures for high-efficiency LED lights. The volunteers also walked residents through safe electricity practices and everyday inspection steps, and handed out automatic fire-suppression multi-taps and dry-powder fire extinguishers. The agency said the LED replacements were meant to brighten interiors and ease the households' electricity bills.

The service has run the corps since last year. After a round of work in Ulsan's Jung-gu district in the first half of this year, the team moved in the second half to households facing winter.

Park Seung-heup, president of the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service, said the work was meaningful. "It is meaningful to use our employees' expertise to ease daily inconveniences for our neighbors and give them safety as a gift," he said.