A court has ruled that survivor benefits should be paid to the bereaved family of a worker who died after his health deteriorated due to work-related stress following an early return to work at his company's request while recovering from a cerebral hemorrhage.

The 8th Administrative Division of the Seoul Administrative Court (Presiding Judge Yang Soon-joo) recently ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed by the bereaved family of a person identified as A against the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service to cancel the refusal to grant survivor benefits and funeral expenses.

A, who worked as a general affairs team manager at a company, was hospitalized after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage at home in 2021 while complaining of stress caused by overwork.

At the time of discharge, optic nerve damage resulted in only about 50% recovery of vision in his left eye, and his muscle strength had not recovered enough for him to walk alone.

The following year, A expressed his intention to the company that he needed at least three more months to recover his health, but the company requested that he handle at least the closing accounts because there was no staff available to perform the closing work.

In response, A returned to work, and as actual staffing was not provided, he performed not only the closing accounts but also general affairs team tasks overall.

That same year, A died while receiving treatment in the intensive care unit for symptoms such as seizures and a coma, and the direct cause of death was diagnosed as spontaneous intracerebral hemorrhage.

The bereaved family claimed survivor benefits and funeral expenses on the grounds that A's death constituted an occupational accident, but the Korea Workers' Compensation and Welfare Service refused payment, stating that it was difficult to recognize a causal relationship between work and death.

Consequently, the bereaved family filed an administrative lawsuit to challenge the decision.

The court ruled in favor of the bereaved family, judging that work-related stress aggravated A's cerebral hemorrhage and contributed to his death.

The panel pointed out, "Cerebral hemorrhage developed while he was complaining of stress from overwork, and in a situation where 12 weeks of clinical observation were required due to aftereffects, he returned to work at the company's request without sufficient recovery."

It added, "He appears to have suffered extreme physical and mental stress even after returning to work," and stated, "It is presumed that such stress contributed to worsening the pre-existing cerebral hemorrhage beyond its natural progression rate."

(Photo: Yonhap News)