President Yoon Suk Yeol held a breakfast meeting with sanitation workers of a Seoul ward Friday to wish them a happy Lunar New Year and thank them for their hard work, his office said.

During his meeting with street sweepers of Dongjak Ward in southern Seoul, Yoon asked them about their working conditions over bowls of "tteokguk," a soup made with rice cakes, often eaten on the holiday.

Yoon thanked them for starting work in the early morning hours, even on holidays, and stressed that their safety should be prioritized.

"The most important thing in the new year is your safety," Yoon was quoted as saying. "You are devoting yourselves to society and your 'devotion' should never become a 'sacrifice' due to safety accidents."

Yoon instructed Environment Minister Han Wha-jin and Dongjak Ward office chief Park Il-ha, who also attended the meeting, to look into the safety of sanitation workers.

He also pledged to review the feedback from the street sweepers and reflect it in his policy. (Yonhap)