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

“SPC to abolish night shifts exceeding 8 hours following President’s intervention”, 27 July 2025

Two days after President Lee Jae-myung visited the SPC Samlip factory in Siheung and criticised excessive working hours, SPC Group announced a sweeping overhaul of its production system aimed at curbing long hours for production workers.

On 27 July, the group stated it would limit night shifts for production workers to a maximum of eight hours. Following a meeting of company executives at the SPC Committee, the group said it plans to reduce night-time operations as much as possible, except for essential items based on product characteristics, thereby shortening factory operating hours.

In addition, SPC committed to gradually reducing daytime working hours to mitigate fatigue, loss of concentration, and the risk of workplace accidents.

A company spokesperson said, “We will completely restructure our production system—this includes expanding the workforce, adjusting production items and volumes, and reorganising production lines—to implement the ban on night shifts exceeding eight hours. The new system will be rolled out from 1 October across all affiliates.”

…

The announcement follows President Lee’s remarks during a site meeting on 25 July at SPC Samlip’s Siheung plant, where he questioned the feasibility of bakery workers working four consecutive 12-hour overnight shifts from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., describing such working conditions as unacceptable.

The Siheung factory was the site of a fatal accident in May, when a woman in her 50s was killed after becoming trapped in machinery while applying lubricant to a conveyor on a cream bread production line. This incident follows earlier fatal accidents at SPC Group affiliates: SPL’s Pyeongtaek plant in October 2022, and its affiliate Shany’s Seongnam factory in August 2023.