[Unofficial translation provided by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre]

“Employee dies in accident at Ourhome factory… CEO Mi-hyun Gu offers apology”, 9 April 2025

An employee who was involved in a workplace accident at Ourhome’s factory in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on April 4th has died five days later, on the 9th.

In a statement released today, Mi-hyun Gu , newly-appointed CEO of Ourhome, expressed her deepest apology, saying, "I bow my head in apology" (…) She also emphasized, "We will cooperate fully with all investigations, make every effort to take necessary measures, and will put in place and thoroughly implement detailed countermeasures to ensure that such an incident never happens again."

The accident occurred at around 11:20 a.m. on April 4th at Ourhome’s processed food production factory in Yongin, which produces fish cakes and other products. A male employee in his 30s became trapped by a machine. Although the employee was rushed to the hospital, he never regained consciousness.

… Speculation within the food service industry suggests that the company's safety management system may have weakened as Ourhome prepares to sell shares to Hanwha Hotels & Resorts and reduce its executive team. Depending on the outcome of the investigation, there are growing expectations that CEO Mi-hyun Gu could face legal consequences due to this incident.