Ssangyong, fired workers resume talks as police step up siege

(ATTN: UPDATES with resumption of talks; CHANGES headline)
PYEONGTAEK, South Korea, Aug. 6 (Yonhap) -- Ssangyong Motor. Co officials and
fired workers occupying a paint shop in the carmaker's sole assembly plant were
resuming talks to end the 77-day standoff as riot police stepped up their siege
of the facility, both sides said Thursday.
The resumption of talks came after days of raid operations by police commandos to
disperse some 450 fired workers, who have been occupying the painting facility
since May 22 in protest at the company's layoffs, authorized by a court in
February when Ssangyong entered bankruptcy protection.
Earlier in the day, the Ssangyong union proposed what both sides called "final
talks" with a new offer and the management accepted it.
Park Young-tae, one of two court-appointed managers for Ssangyong, and Han
Sang-kyun, the union leader, began the talks inside the plant at 11:00 a.m. in
this rural town of Pyeongtaek, about 70km south of Seoul.
"The company decided to accept the proposal because it is the most plausible
method to peacefully resolve the situation," a company official said.
On Wednesday, police commandos seized all facilities in the plant with the
exception of the paint shop as it is filled with flammable materials. Scores of
protesters and police were injured in violent clashes earlier in the week.
The Wednesday raid also prompted some 110 fired workers to voluntarily give up
their occupation, according to police.
(END)