 |
| A notice in front of a sales office of a commercial bank says operating hours have been normalized to 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. as of Monday. Yonhap |
By Lee Min-hyung
A financial union has warned it will take legal action against banks' decision to normalize their operating hours on Monday, the first day of the lifting of most indoor mask rules here.
According to the Korea Financial Industry Union (KFIU), the banks' decision goes against an agreement between labor and management. The union said it will file a lawsuit against the banks soon.
Earlier this month, both sides held talks on returning the banks' operating hours to the pre-pandemic standard. Since February 2020, banks have run reduced operating hours at some branches, opening at 9:30 a.m. and closing at 3:30 p.m. on then-escalating fears of the spread of COVID-19. Banks' pre-pandemic working hours were from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Regarding the restoration of the full operating hours, executives from commercial banks and the union engaged in negotiations on Jan. 12. Those from banks' management called for the need to fully normalize operating hours, but the union suggested a compromise plan of operating branch offices from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and both sides failed to reach a consensus.
"This is a complete violation of an agreement between banks' management and labor," the KFIU said Monday. "It is reasonable for banks to postpone the planned return of the operating hours if both sides failed to reach a complete agreement on the agenda."
But the union said it will still leave the door open for dialogue with banks' management.
"Banks' management ― which was under pressure from the government ― did not show any willingness for negotiation at some point, and decided to push ahead with their decision," the union said. "We consider it an apparent violation of the labor-management agreement, and received opinions from law firms that we can launch a complaint against them."
It went on to denounce Finance Supervisory Service (FSS) Governor Lee Bok-hyun for his latest remark on taking action against the union.
"The government and financial authorities have a hardline stance against any expression of opinion delivered in an unlawful manner," Lee had told reporters in Seoul, Jan. 26.
"The remark sounds like a threat to the union, which stemmed from his hatred against us," the union said. "This is not an issue in which the leader of the watchdog can intervene. A court will determine whether the complete return of banks' operating hours goes against the law."
![[RAS KOREA] Preserving memories at Cheongju City Archives](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/53ecc69c116c49af9ba0005288526ab5.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] Long-awaited extension of Korean Pavilion at Venice Biennale to be pushed forward](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/d8d5090875824ce08a90bb2c5a8f8c05.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
