PSY’s Summer Swag disaster: Agency under investigation for flouting safety rules after a worker’s death

The Gangwon Province branch of the labor ministry raided PSY's agency, P NATION, on Thursday, August 25, 2022, in connection with the death of a worker while dismantling the Summer Swag concert set.

The worker was a Mongolian in his twenties. He was a laborer at the Summer Swag concert in Gangneung on July 30 and was dismantling the stage when he fell to his death.

The ministry raided not just P NATION’s head office in Seoul but also its sub-contractors, around 9:30 am, reported The Korea Times. The victim, according to officials, was working without adequate safety equipment while dismantling the water-show concert despite the bad weather.

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PSY’s Summer Swag gets caught up in industry safety law violations

PSY's P NATION is being investigated for violating industrial safety laws during its recent Summer Swag concert, after a worker died on July 30 while dismantling the set in Gangneung. The Mongolian worker was reportedly hired by one of the agency's sub-contractors. The agency had earlier released a condolence statement after the worker’s death.

The labor ministry, on the other hand, believes it was a case of negligence because a search and seizure warrant was issued shortly after the statement. The warrant was issued for violating the Industrial Safety and Health Act, which states that if the weather is bad due to any unstable conditions, no work should be done or work that is already in progress must be stopped.

Another law that PSY’s P NATION could be booked under is the Serious Disaster Punishment Act introduced in January this year. Per the act, business-owners and management will face the direct brunt of the law in case of any death or serious injury.

Though the law drew criticism since the CEOs and higher ups are not present at the scene and usually indirectly oversee labor work, the law “stipulates a responsibility for management to prevent serious accidents,” said a law professor at Pusan National University to Al-Jazeera.

Despite the fact that PSY owns 60% of the company, the company is led by an unnamed individual with the surname Kim. According to reports, if the ongoing investigation leads in that direction, Kim, not the singer, will bear the brunt of the consequences.

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Meanwhile, the Summer Swag concert has made multiple headlines in the past and for all the wrong reasons. It was first criticized for its surplus wastage of drinkable water, as it is often dubbed as the “Drenched Show.”

Later, national news outlets reported on the deterioration of the Yeosu Jinnam Sports Complex, one of the Summer Swag concert venues. It later made headlines again when it was revealed that multiple people who had allegedly attended PSY's Summer Swag concerts had been diagnosed with COVID-19.