South Korea's business community expressed "deep regret" Thursday over failed parliamentary negotiations over granting an additional grace period for the country's workplace disaster law. Floor leaders of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) and the main opposition Democratic Party convened Wednesday to discuss the revision of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act but failed to reach an agreement before a plenary session at the National Assembly earlier in the day. The expanded implementation of the law, under which employers can face criminal charges for management decisions involving serious industrial accidents, is set to take effect Saturday as scheduled. From Saturday, small businesses with fewer than 50 employees will also be subject to the law. The Korea Enterprises Federation issued a statement saying it deeply regrets the breakdown in parliamentary discussions and argued that the expanded implementation will likely result in side effects, such as the closure of workplaces and the unemployment of w orkers, "rather than achieving the intended effect of preventing future accidents." The federation added efforts should be made to promptly pursue supplementary legislation that focuses on prevention rather than punishment, such as converting excessive criminal penalties for executives into fines and other economic punishments. A senior official at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry also expressed concerns, saying management uncertainty for small businesses will increase even further if the law is enforced as it is. The number of on-duty disasters has not decreased since the law took effect, raising questions about its effectiveness. Business owners and the PPP argue that the law does not clearly define the criteria for punishment and that small and medium-sized firms lack preparation due to their limited conditions. Source: Yonhap News Agency