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When do you start preparing for cold-related illnesses, and what do you prepare first?
2026.10.23 11:26
Hello, I am the person in charge of safety and health at a food manufacturing plant.
Our shipping area and ambient temperature warehouse are practically half-outside, so we hear a lot of complaints about it being cold on-site every winter.
Last year, we hurriedly bought and distributed hand warmers and thermal gloves only after a cold wave advisory was issued in mid-December, but there was a lot of complaining because we didn't have enough and the sizes didn't fit.
I'm trying to prepare in advance this year, but now that I'm actually trying to do it, I have no idea which month is the right one to start.
Summer heatwaves are somewhat manageable because there are established guidelines for rest periods, but I'm confused whether there are separate standards for cold waves.
The break room is located only in the office building, so the personnel at the shipping area have to walk quite a distance to rest.
Also, I’ve heard that people with high blood pressure or diabetes need to be extra careful in cold weather, so I’m curious how you identify and manage such cases. I’m hesitant to ask since it’s health information.
I would appreciate it if you could share when other companies usually start preparing for cold-related illnesses, and whether you prioritize cold-weather gear, break areas, or adjusting work hours!
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- 01CommentsWe also received a near-perfect score for the vendor's report, so it was difficult to use it as evidence when reporting. I am also curious about how many questions you typically include in your company surveys.82226.10.22
- 02coach AnswerHello, this is Nudge EAP ☺️ Since rejoining a company after leaving it constitutes a fresh start to the employment relationship, you are, in principle, required to conduct the training again upon hiring. The Ministry of Employment and Labor's Q&A regarding the "2026 Safety and Health Education Guide" also advises that fixed-term workers who have worked for 2 to 3 months and are rehired for the same department and job after a certain period are not exempt. Even if the employee was performing the same work, if there was a one-month gap, it is safer to conduct the training again based on the current contract and keep records. - Training Hours: These are determined based on the current employment contract period, not the time of initial hiring. The minimum requirements are 1 hour for daily workers and fixed-term workers working for less than 1 week; 4 hours for workers working for more than 1 week up to 1 month; and 8 hours or more for other workers (Appendix 4 of the Enforcement Rules of the Occupational Safety and Health Act). - Reduction for Experienced Workers: If you hire a person who has worked for 6 months or more in the same industry (Korean Standard Industrial Classification sub-category) within one year of leaving their previous job, you may reduce the training required upon hiring to at least 50% of the hours specified in Appendix 4 (Article 27, Paragraph 5, Subparagraph 1 of the Enforcement Rules). It is a reduction in duration, not an exemption, and experience at other companies applies if the industry is the same. Please first verify whether the current employee's initial period of employment was at least six months. - Daily workers are exempt if they resume work at the same workplace and perform the same duties within one week of receiving training (Note to Appendix 4). I was unable to find an official interpretation regarding cases where renewal occurs immediately without a gap. If you wish to omit this step, I recommend documenting the information confirmed with the competent regional employment and labor office as well as the company's standards. For reference, there is an interpretation by the Ministry of Employment and Labor stating that separate training is not required when only the employment type changes, such as when a contract worker transitions to a regular employee while performing the same duties and working environment. Records of employment history are based on the training log, attendance signatures, and certificates of completion left by the company. If you work at a workplace with many rehired employees, you can make an immediate judgment in the future by recording the hiring type (new, rehired, or renewal), previous resignation date, experience in the same industry, the applied standard (full, reduction, or exemption), and the basis together in a single line in the training record. Since the training records of former employees are also used again for rehiring decisions, I recommend that you do not discard them immediately but instead establish internal retention standards. I have organized situational judgment tables and an Excel spreadsheet below that generates a judgment and minimum training hours simply by entering the hire date, resignation date, and work experience. https://nudgeeap.com/community/safety-health-training/137250136 https://nudgeeap.com/community/safety-health-training/137290311152226.10.21
- 0320026.10.23
- 01coach AnswerHello, this is Nudge EAP ☺️. Since the health interview and the department head interview determine different matters before returning to work, we recommend conducting both. The health interview determines "which duties should be restricted based on the current health condition," while the department head interview determines "how to assign duties within those restrictions," so the health interview should come first. - Before the interview: Obtain job requirements from the department head, such as shift scheduling, weight limits for heavy loads, and equipment operation status, and pass them on to the employee. Instruct them to show these requirements to their attending physician during medical appointments. This makes it easier to obtain a more specific medical opinion rather than just a single line stating "able to work." - Health interview: Compare the medical opinion with the job requirements and finalize your opinion regarding a return as is, a conditional return, or a re-evaluation. If you find it difficult to make a judgment, you can request a work suitability assessment from an occupational health physician or an occupational and environmental medicine specialist. - Department head interview: Determine the placement and the plan for the first week of return based solely on the work restriction items from the health interview results. If you are concerned about the burden on the employee, you may conduct the meetings on consecutive days, or if the employee agrees, proceed with a single three-party meeting including the Health Manager. Even in this case, you should handle health matters only during the health interview session, and separate the discussion so that only work adjustments are discussed once the Department Head enters. It is safer to convey only the restriction items, duration, and review date to the Department Head, such as "Exclusion from night shifts for 4 weeks, exclusion from handling items over 20kg alone, review after 2 weeks," instead of the diagnosis or symptoms. Since health information is sensitive data and requires separate consent for processing (Article 23 of the Personal Information Protection Act), I recommend keeping the original medical opinion and health interview records separate from personnel records and sharing only the agreed-upon details of the work adjustment with HR and the Department Head. For reference, while the reinstatement procedure for general sick leave is not separately defined by law and follows the company's internal rules, if the illness was one that prohibited work (Article 220 of the Enforcement Rules of the Occupational Safety and Health Act), it is mandatory to obtain the opinion of a physician, such as a Health Manager or Occupational Health Doctor, before allowing the employee to return to work; therefore, it is advisable to verify this aspect first. I have organized an Excel role chart in the post below that generates a step-by-step schedule simply by entering the 6 pre-return steps, the scope of information sharing, and the expected return date. https://nudgeeap.com/community/risk-assessment/137145056 https://nudgeeap.com/community/risk-assessment/137148531112226.10.20
- 02coach AnswerHello, this is Nudge EAP ☺️ Since rejoining a company after leaving it constitutes a fresh start to the employment relationship, you are, in principle, required to conduct the training again upon hiring. The Ministry of Employment and Labor's Q&A regarding the "2026 Safety and Health Education Guide" also advises that fixed-term workers who have worked for 2 to 3 months and are rehired for the same department and job after a certain period are not exempt. Even if the employee was performing the same work, if there was a one-month gap, it is safer to conduct the training again based on the current contract and keep records. - Training Hours: These are determined based on the current employment contract period, not the time of initial hiring. The minimum requirements are 1 hour for daily workers and fixed-term workers working for less than 1 week; 4 hours for workers working for more than 1 week up to 1 month; and 8 hours or more for other workers (Appendix 4 of the Enforcement Rules of the Occupational Safety and Health Act). - Reduction for Experienced Workers: If you hire a person who has worked for 6 months or more in the same industry (Korean Standard Industrial Classification sub-category) within one year of leaving their previous job, you may reduce the training required upon hiring to at least 50% of the hours specified in Appendix 4 (Article 27, Paragraph 5, Subparagraph 1 of the Enforcement Rules). It is a reduction in duration, not an exemption, and experience at other companies applies if the industry is the same. Please first verify whether the current employee's initial period of employment was at least six months. - Daily workers are exempt if they resume work at the same workplace and perform the same duties within one week of receiving training (Note to Appendix 4). I was unable to find an official interpretation regarding cases where renewal occurs immediately without a gap. If you wish to omit this step, I recommend documenting the information confirmed with the competent regional employment and labor office as well as the company's standards. For reference, there is an interpretation by the Ministry of Employment and Labor stating that separate training is not required when only the employment type changes, such as when a contract worker transitions to a regular employee while performing the same duties and working environment. Records of employment history are based on the training log, attendance signatures, and certificates of completion left by the company. If you work at a workplace with many rehired employees, you can make an immediate judgment in the future by recording the hiring type (new, rehired, or renewal), previous resignation date, experience in the same industry, the applied standard (full, reduction, or exemption), and the basis together in a single line in the training record. Since the training records of former employees are also used again for rehiring decisions, I recommend that you do not discard them immediately but instead establish internal retention standards. I have organized situational judgment tables and an Excel spreadsheet below that generates a judgment and minimum training hours simply by entering the hire date, resignation date, and work experience. https://nudgeeap.com/community/safety-health-training/137250136 https://nudgeeap.com/community/safety-health-training/137290311152226.10.21
- 03coach AnswerHello, this is Nudge EAP ☺️ Article 4, Subparagraph 4 of the Enforcement Decree of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act stipulates that management responsible for safety and health must formulate a budget necessary to implement ① the provision of safety and health personnel, facilities, and equipment required for accident prevention, ② the improvement of hazardous and dangerous factors, and ③ other matters notified, and execute it according to its intended purpose. Since improvement costs identified through risk assessments fall under the category of "improvement of hazardous and dangerous factors," it is correct that they should be reflected in the budget; however, the law does not specify which departmental budget account they should be allocated to. In fact, Subparagraph 5 of the same article grants safety and health managers and supervisors the authority and budget necessary for their duties, so formulating them into a departmental budget is also permissible. The key point is that you must be able to verify that the funds needed for improvements have actually been allocated and executed according to plan. Article 36 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act also mandates the establishment and implementation of improvement measures based on the results of risk assessments. Therefore, it is advisable to manage the reasons and schedules separately for items that have been stalled for several months under the "scheduled for improvement" status. In practice, it is common to operate them mixed together as shown below. - Facility improvements (workbenches, racks, local exhaust ventilation, etc.): Allocate a separate 'Safety and Health Improvement' item within the relevant department's budget. During the budget planning period, the Safety and Health department should submit a list of improvement measures and estimated costs to verify their inclusion. - Common/minor improvements or new items arising during the year: The Safety and Health department should establish a consolidated reserve item and execute them first in order of risk level. - Implementation management: Record the risk level, responsible department, budget source, expected completion date, and reason for non-implementation for each item in a ledger, and report to the head of management during the semi-annual inspection. Regarding the issue of "no budget this year, so we'll do it next year," establishing a standard where high-risk items are processed first in the current year as reserve items, while the remainder is recorded as a basis for inclusion in the following year's budget, will reduce disputes between departments. While improvements are delayed due to budget constraints, I recommend recording temporary measures such as changes in work methods or protective equipment. The format for the Improvement Measure Implementation Management Ledger and the items for recording management inspection meetings are summarized in the post below. https://nudgeeap.com/community/risk-assessment/134758888 https://nudgeeap.com/community/serious-accidents-act/134369648141126.10.15
- 01coach AnswerHello, this is Nudge EAP. As you mentioned, it is more important to verify ‘how quickly a counselor matching the employee’s desired criteria is connected’ rather than the total number of counselors. Please request and compare the following items in your proposal using the same criteria: 1. Time taken from application to the first contact/initial consultation over the past year, and the assignment rate within 3/7 days. 2. Methods for reflecting gender, consultation topic, region, available time, and preference for in-person/non-face-to-face interactions in the matching process. 3. The actual number of available counselors by region, time slot, and topic, as well as availability for nights and weekends. 4. Counselor change procedures, additional costs, limits on the number of changes, and the time required for reassignment after a change. 5. Methods for providing alternative guidance and presenting options to employees when no suitable counselor is available. 6. Operational results and improvement examples, such as assignment satisfaction, counselor change rates, and dropout rates. In particular, rather than just looking at the number of registered counselors, such as a ‘counselor pool of 1,000,’ the difference becomes much clearer if you request the number of currently active counselors, the number of recent actual assignments, and the average waiting time by region. If possible, it is helpful to provide the vendor with 2-3 identical virtual cases to receive an explanation of the allocation process and estimated time, or to receive a direct demonstration of the application screen and change procedures before signing the contract to compare them.618826.09.22
- 02coach AnswerHello, this is Nudge EAP.☺️ The simplest method is for employees to simply receive guidance and apply directly, as the company does not transfer personal information. If you want a health manager to forward a name and contact information to an EAP agency for contact, it is safer to explain the receiving agency, purpose, items, retention period, and the right to refuse consent, and to obtain clear consent from the individual. Since checkup results and symptoms are sensitive health information, do not consider them included in the existing health checkup consent; instead, please write down only the content to be conveyed and obtain separate consent. In practice, it is common to separate the options into ① consent for forwarding name and contact information and ② consent for forwarding checkup results and symptoms, ensuring that there is no disadvantage in using the EAP even if the second option is not agreed to. The burden of repeating explanations can be reduced by providing the option for employees to send a summary of their consultation request, written directly by the employee, to the agency. However, since the wording and procedures may vary depending on whether the contract with the EAP agency involves the outsourcing of personal information processing or the provision of information to a third party, please review the contract details with your in-house personal information manager before implementation. It is a good idea to define the scope of responses in advance to the company to prevent unnecessary feedback regarding consultation requests or their content.718926.09.21
- 03coach AnswerHello, this is Nudge EAP☺️ While it is difficult to definitively conclude that a non-face-to-face interview itself constitutes a procedural issue, please review your company's regulations and investigation guidelines first. Before a video interview, it is advisable to verify identity, confirm that the space is private, check for the presence of a third party, and confirm consent regarding audio or video recording. Additionally, it is recommended to record the content of the interview and obtain confirmation from the individual. If it is difficult to obtain a sufficient statement due to time differences or communication conditions, please inform the individual of the opportunity for supplementary written statements after the initial non-face-to-face interview or for an additional interview upon their return. Whether to conclude the matter solely through a non-face-to-face interview should be determined based on whether the subject's right to make a statement has been fully guaranteed, whether the facts are clear, and whether further verification is required. However, if the matter is ambiguous, it is safer to review the procedures with the labor and legal representative.656626.09.22
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