Revision of related laws and mandatory work environment measurement system according to exposure to harmful welding factors
-Focusing on cases of specialized high school welding practice-
Kim, Min Ju
Department of Health and Safety
Graduate School,...
Revision of related laws and mandatory work environment measurement system according to exposure to harmful welding factors
-Focusing on cases of specialized high school welding practice-
Kim, Min Ju
Department of Health and Safety
Graduate School, Catholic University of Pusan
Advisor : Professor Kim, Hwa il. Ph.D.
The purpose of this study is to create a pleasant environment in the lab and promote safety and health awareness among students in specialized high school welding labs in Jeollanam-do by identifying the amount of exposure to harmful factors during welding practice and the corresponding students' awareness, and presenting data that can be used for partial revisions to the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the School Health Act or for establishing basic policies.
The contents of the study are as follows. First, through a preliminary survey, we looked at the situation of students who were defenselessly exposed to harmful factors during the welding training course and the current status of the welding process at industrial sites. Second, the provisions on work environment management were reviewed by comparing the Occupational Safety and Health Act and the School Health Act. Third, we reviewed the carcinogenicity information, effects on the human body when exposed, and exposure standards for harmful agents to which high school students are exposed without protection, based on domestic and international standards. Fourth, through work environment measurement, the degree of exposure of students to harmful factors generated during welding training was evaluated numerically, and compared with the exposure amount of harmful factors generated during welding processes at industrial sites. Fifth, we considered the exposure amount of students by applying exposure standards stipulated in foreign countries. As a final step, we structured the general characteristics of respondents, the actual condition of the practice environment in which welding is conducted, and the perception of industrial health into a total of 10 questions and inquired about them to students in the welding practice room and workers in small workplaces. And after comparing the results, frequency analysis, cross-analysis, and t-test were conducted.
As a result of the study, the following points were confirmed. First, specialized high school students who practice welding are exposed to 'harmful factors subject to work environment measurement' listed in the Enforcement Rules of the Occupational Safety and Health Act [Appendix 21] for an average of 280 minutes a day, but since they are not workers, they are subject to work environment measurement and special health examinations. It is in a blind spot where it is legally excluded. In the School Health Act, there was no clause requiring protection for students exposed to harmful factors listed in the Enforcement Rules of the Occupational Safety and Health Act [Appendix 21]. Second, the order of exposure to harmful factors occurring in the welding laboratory was in the same order as the order of exposure to harmful factors occurring in the welding process at industrial sites in Korea, and Welding Fume and Fe2O3 were found to be at a higher level than in industrial sites.Third, if the exposure standards for harmful factors stipulated by the Ministry of Labor in Korea are applied, all harmful factors are evaluated as below the exposure standards, but as a result of applying the exposure standards stipulated in foreign countries, some students exceed the exposure standards for some harmful factors. was exposed as Fourth, in the survey questions, specialized high school students' awareness of 'harmfulness and risk of welding' and 'safety and health education level and occupational health' is lower than that of general industrial sites, which is the control group, and their awareness of harmful factors occurring during welding practice is low. Through measuring the working environment, we were able to confirm statistically that students were hoping to have their health guaranteed.
In accordance with the Enforcement Rules of the Occupational Safety and Health Act [Appendix Table 21], the introduction of mandatory work environment measurement for students exposed to harmful factors will help students who will work in the future to be aware of occupational health and the correct selection of protective gear at an early stage, thereby reducing the risk of industrial accidents and accidents in our country. It is useful in that it can be used in basic policies to prevent the occurrence of occupational diseases, and on the other hand, it is meaningful in that it can make students at Korea's specialized high schools aware of the effects that harmful factors, which they did not learn about professionally in specialized high schools, have on the human body.
Keywords: welding, specialized high school, school health law, occupational safety and health law, work environment measurement