위험관리형(goal based approach) 산업안전보건법령 구조와 집행 ― 영국의 입법과 집행을 주제로 ―

초록

This article examines the structure and enforcement of occupational safety and health (OSH) law in the United Kingdom as a representative model of a goal-based, risk-oriented regulatory system, and contrasts it with the predominantly rule-based approach of Korean OSH law and practice. Despite continuous expansion of employers’ duties and stronger sanctions in Korea, responsibility and enforcement still largely hinge on compliance with enumerated statutory obligations rather than on substantive risk management. The article first analyzes the limitations of the British factory law system, which relied on detailed prescriptive rules, and explains how these shortcomings led to the enactment of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. Central to this reform is the imposition of a general duty on employers to ensure health and safety “so far as is reasonably practicable,” shifting the regulatory focus from formal rule compliance to the identification, assessment, and control of foreseeable risks. The article then explores how this goal-based structure operates in practice through the UK enforcement framework, particularly the Enforcement Policy Statement (EPS) and the Enforcement Management Model (EMM). These instruments guide inspectors to prioritize risk severity and the adequacy of risk management, enabling proportionate and preventive intervention before accidents occur. Finally, the article examines leading UK criminal cases to show that courts consistently interpret OSH duties as obligations to manage risk rather than as collections of discrete behavioral rules. In contrast, Korean Supreme Court case law has only recently begun to move toward a more risk-oriented interpretation while remaining largely anchored in a rule-based framework. The article concludes that enhancing the effectiveness of OSH regulation in Korea requires a structural shift toward a goal-based model that evaluates compliance by reference to whether workplace risks have been reasonably and systematically controlled.

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