During the festive seasons, particularly around the time of the lunar new year's day, the postal workers delivering the mails and parcels experience a markedly increased volume of delivery items in harsh winter weather conditions that they have to deliver to the customers on the icy sidewalks and roads on foot or by motorbikes. They even have to work several days in a row without proper breaks. The Korea Daily Labor News(www.labortoday.co.kr) covers the daily work of postal workers from dawn to dusk at the Ilsan Post Office in Goyang city, Gyeonggi-do province.

The annual average death toll for postal workers during the delivery service reaches 259. A postal worker who was riding his motorbike to deliver the mails and parcels in Hwacheon, Kangwon-do province died of a traffic accident on January 20(see another report on January 23 by the Labortoday). Safety measures for postal workers, particularly during the busiest festive seasons, are urgently required to prevent the fatal accidents.

reported by Yoon Ja-eun & Lee Eun-young

translated by Kim Sung-jin