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November 27, 2009
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Korea’s two umbrella unions - the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and Federation of Korean Trade Unions - announced yesterday that they will launch an anti-government protest after they failed to reach common ground on new labor policies. The policies concern allowing multiple labor unions in one workplace and banning paying full-time labor union workers. The announcement was made yesterday at a series of six-party talks for a labor-management-government tripartite commission that broke down Wednesday. The two groups threatened to initiate a joint-strike against the Labor Ministry’s decision to allow multiple unions in a single workplace and ban employers from paying union officials working entirely on labor union affairs from Jan. 1, 2010. The action would be the first time that the two umbrella unions have agreed to stage a joint strike in the 12 year history of the two unions. Both KCTU and FKTU are demanding the government delay implementing the new labor measures, calling the proposals a suppression of the labor movement. “The government and management are responsible for the break down of the six-party talks because they insisted on their position and ignored our demands,” KCTU officials said in a press conference held yesterday afternoon at KCTU headquarters in Seoul. “If the government, the key holder of the talks, does not change its position related to the new labor measures, it is unlikely that the problem will be resolved.” FKTU officials said 200,000 union members will start a series of demonstrations across the country starting Saturday and will stage a strike in front of the headquarters of the ruling Grand National Party located across the country for an “indefinite period.” The FKTU, with 725,000 members, had agreed to cooperate with the government in labor policy-making decisions, but it will make an announcement on Dec.1 on a general strike and ending cooperation with the government, according to FKTU. Experts said it’s still unclear whether the joint anti-government protest will work because whether or not full-time labor union members are paid will not have a direct impact on the working conditions of the members of the labor unions. Also, the two umbrella unions, government and management agreed to implement the new labor measures three years ago. By Kim Ki-chan, Kim Mi-ju [mijukim@joongang.co.kr] |
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