Opposition mounts ahead of parliamentary vote on labor union reforms

By Shin Hae-in

SEOUL, Dec. 31 (Yonhap) -- Labor and business groups in South Korea were raising opposition over a set of bills calling for drastic changes in the current labor union related law Thursday, as the parliament was set to put the revision on a final vote.

The National Assembly committee on labor and environment narrowly approved the
bills late Wednesday night amid boycott from opposition party members.
The bills, approved by eight committee members belonging to the ruling Grand
National Party, call for, among other things, permitting more than one labor
union at one company and preventing firms from paying wages to full-time union
officials.
Both labor and management are against the revision, claiming it will burden both
sides and strain their relations.
The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, more militant of the South Korea's two
umbrella groups, announced some 800,000 of its members will stage a walkout by
April should the parliament pass the bills.
"The committee chairwoman railroaded the bills without consent from all members
and ignoring our opinion. This is unacceptable," said Lim Sung-kyu, head of the
confederation. The chairwoman is rep. Choo Mi-ae from the opposition Democratic
Party.
The Korea Employers Foundation also expressed regret over the bills.
"The bills focus too much on staving off tension in the industrial environment
and ignore the agreement previously made among labor, management and the
government," the foundation said in a statement, referring to the decision to
delay implementation of sensitive provisions for more than a year.
"These bills will burden business groups immensely," he said.
In an effort to alleviate disputes, Choo Mi-ae, head of the Assembly labor
committee, agreed upon a compromise proposal offered by the government and put
the bills on vote Wednesday, which was only attended by ruling party lawmakers.
Under the adjusted plans, firms will be banned from paying full-time union
officials from July next year and the plan on multiple-unions system will go into
full effect starting 2011 July.
The original implementation had been set for Friday.
Under the plans, all unions will be subject to express their opinion via one
coordinated union during labor-management negotiations. If they fail to reach an
agreement, a union with more than half the total union members will have the
right for collective bargaining.
When labor unions demand collective negotiations without forming a single
channel, employers can reject the bargaining proposal and would not be punished
for unfair labor practice as well.
Employees working full-time for labor union can be partly subject to a paid
time-off only when their union activities are considered "related to the
improvement of labor-management relationship."
The main opposition Democratic Party claims the adjusted plans give "special
favor" to business groups.
"We claim the vote null and void," said opposition party member Kim Jae-yoon
after the bills were passed by the parliamentary committee Wednesday.
Despite objection from opposition parties, the revised bill will likely win
parliamentary approval with the ruling party controlling a majority of 169 seats
in the 298-member unicameral house.
Due to fierce opposition from both labor and management, the government has on
three occasions delayed implementing the bills, originally legislated back in
1997.
Setting an ultimatum for Jan. 1 2010, the government has held a series of
meetings over the past months with representatives of labor and management but
failed to narrow their differences.
hayney@yna.co.kr
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