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| Ssangyong Motor union workers occupy the automaker's Pyeongtaek facilities while one protester ignites Molotov cocktails in July, 2018. Korea Times file |
By Kim Hyun-bin
The Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), a major business lobby group, said Monday that it submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Employment and Labor asking for permission to hire replacement workers during strikes and to prohibit the illegal occupation of business sites by unionized workers.
The proposal, titled "improvement plan for establishing a balanced labor-management relationship," includes allowing substitute workers in case of strikes, prohibiting illegal occupations of workplaces during labor walkouts, improving what businesses claim are unfair labor practices, expanding the validity period of collective agreements and improving the voting procedure for strikes.
The FKI pointed out that in the event of a strike, employers cannot use replacement workers such as new hires, subcontracted laborers or dispatched personnel. The business lobby group said this causes companies to suffer production disruptions and penalties for non-compliance with contracts.
"Employers lack the right to defend against labor walkouts, which leaves companies helpless against excessive demands or reckless actions by unionized workers," the FKI said.
The FKI also took issue with the fact that the Labor Union Act limits the ability of employers to prevent unions from illegally occupying production facilities. The FKI argues that this not only infringes on employers' property rights, but also interferes with the work of employees who do not participate in strikes.
In order to prevent such damage, the FKI emphasized that Korea, like other economically developed countries, should completely ban the illegal occupation of workplace facilities.
The FKI also said that Korea's labor system targets only employers to impose criminal penalties for violations, which it claims is unreasonable.
"As long as the union's right to strike is recognized, which is a legitimate right, businesses should be allowed to hire substitute employees during strikes so they can continue to operate," an official at a major conglomerate said. "Also, the illegal occupation of facilities by the union during a strike has a negative effect on both labor and management."
Citing the U.S. as an example, the FKI suggested that it is necessary to abolish the provisions on criminal punishment for employers and create a new system that manages unfair labor practices.
At the same time, the FKI argued that former employees who were laid off should be prevented from entering the workplace, as it causes problems such as leakage of key information to competitors. In order to prevent this, the FKI stressed that it is necessary for employers to deny former workers access to the workplace.
"In Korea, the union's right to industrial action is sufficiently guaranteed, but unlike major advanced countries, employers' right to defend themselves is insufficient," Choo Gwang-ho, head of the FKI's economic division, said. "In order to minimize industrial damage caused by labor-management conflict, it is critical to revise the law."
