A-Infos (en) South Korea: Rank-and-file rebellion in KCTU

["Lucien W." <029WALT@cosmos.wits.ac.za>]

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Subject:        Re: South Korea: Rank-and-file rebellion in KCTU (fwd)



                                 Published on: Tuesday  February 10  1998

                      South Korea
                           Union body threatens
                              strike from Friday

                      REUTERS in Seoul
                      Updated at 6.50pm:
                      South Korea's militant umbrella union has rejected
last week's
                      tripartite agreement making layoffs easier and will
strike unless
                      the pact is renegotiated, a senior union official said.

                      ''Our representatives decided this morning to stage a
general
                      strike indefinitely from Friday unless our demand for
                      renegotiations is accepted,'' said a senior official
of the Korean
                      Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU).

                      The pact was a crucial element of South Korea's
reforms under
                      the International Monetary Fund's record-breaking US$58.35
                      billion (HK$451 billion) rescue package agreed in
December.

                      Financial markets have responded enthusiastically to the
                      agreement on layoffs, which are technically legal but
difficult to
                      execute under the country's current labour regulations.

                      The union official, who declined to be named, said the
                      550,000-member confederation could call a strike even
before
                      Friday, if the National Assembly takes step to pass
the legislation
                      this week as scheduled.

                      The pact, reached on Friday by negotiators
representing business,
                      labour and government - including the confederation -
would
                      allow management to lay off workers with prior notice
and to hire
                      temporary workers.

                      But in a concession to labour, the tripartite
agreement also
                      allowed teachers to engage in collective bargaining
and to permit
                      unions to participate in political activities.

                      It also outlined reforms of Korean conglomerates and
cutting the
                      size of government, under President-elect Kim Dae-jung's
                      philosophy of ''sharing the pain'' during the
economic crisis.

                      Outgoing President Kim Young-sam and Mr Kim Dae-jung
                      declared on Tuesday the tripartite agreement must be
                      implemented.

                      ''The labour-business-government agreement to overcome the
                      current economic hardship is a symbol of national
unity that
                      should remain forever in our history, and should be
implemented
                      successfully,'' a statement from the presidential
office quoted the
                      two Kims as saying.

                      ''Therefore, the agreement should be implemented in
support of
                      all the people,'' it said.

                      Their remarks came hours after the the KCTU rejected last
                      week's agreement and their threat to strike unless it was
                      renegotiated. It was unclear whether the remarks were
made in
                      specific response to the labour group's threats.

                      Earlier on Tuesday, senior confederation official
Chung Sung-hee
                      said the group had demanded the labour agreement be
                      renegotiated to include more reforms of the conglomerates.

                      In an earlier vote to reject the pact taken around
midnight on
                      Monday, rank-and-file leaders also demanded the
resignation of
                      confederation leaders who negotiated the tripartite
agreement.

                      ''You would think local leaders wouldn't stick their
necks out
                      unless the rank and file was going to follow. That's
a slap in the
                      face of the senior leadership,'' said veteran
securities analyst
                      Hank Morris.

                      The confederation vote came as legislation
implementing the pact
                      was to be brought before the National Assembly.

                      Local media reported on Tuesday the labour reform
legislation
                      was stuck in an assembly committee after the majority
Grand
                      National Party (GNP) refused to attend a session
where it was to
                      be debated.

                      The reports said the GNP objected to provisions in
the agreement
                      allowing labour to organise a teachers' union and
engage in
                      political activities.

                      The KCTU's rejection of the agreement sent the won
currency
                      sliding to 1,605.0 to the US dollar on Tuesday
morning from
                      Monday's close of 1,558.0, dealers said.

                      ''The spectre of labour strife will put the brakes on
fund inflows
                      for portfolio investment,'' said a Shinhan Bank dealer.







































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