On Nov. 15, 138,000 workers in South Korea went on strike. They were responding to a call from the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), which called for a four-hour warning strike in preparation for the 2006 General Strike set to begin the next week on Nov. 22.
The workers were from 193 local unions affiliated with the KCTU, one of South Korea’s major trade union federations,
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International day of action
The KCTU issued a call for Nov. 15 to be an international day of action to support South Korean workers. Solidarity actions took place in over 40 countries.
The ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) issued a statement of support to the KCTU and sent a letter to South Korean president Roh Moo Hyun, minister of labor Lee Sang-Soo, and minister of general administration and home affairs Lee Yong-Sup. Click here to read the ANSWER statement and letter.
Demands of the strike
South Korea has long been a bastion of class struggle. It has one of the most class conscious and militant working
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Even though unionization has decreased somewhat—last year it was 10.3 percent, compared to 13.8 percent in 1995—the number of strikes is increasing. In 1995, there were 88 strikes. Last year, there were 286. South Korea had twice as many strike days last year as the world average. (Financial Times, Nov. 14)
The KCTU—the most radical and militant trade union federation in the country—has been at the forefront of many of these struggles.
The demands of the KCTU in the warning strike and coming general strike are to stop trade union repression, stop the Irregular Workers Bill, rescind the current Industrial Relations Roadmap Agreement, fundamentally reform the OHS insurance bill and stop Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement negotiations.
These are vital issues to the South Korean working class.
A major issue in many of the union demonstrations and strikes is the rights of irregular workers—workers without full time employment. Irregular workers now constitute 56 percent of the country’s workforce. Nearly 70 percent of women workers are irregular.
The number of irregular workers has skyrocketed since the International Monetary Fund intervention in the country following the 1997 capitalist economic crisis that dramatically impacted South Korea.
Most irregular workers are denied the right to form unions and engage in collective bargaining and collective action. Nonetheless, irregular workers in many sectors have organized and carried out strikes and demonstrations. They have faced termination and severe repression, including brutal police attacks and imprisonment.
Workers—both irregular and permanent—regularly face severe police repression when they demonstrate and strike. Last July, Ha Joong Keun died as a result of a severe police beating during a protest of the Korean Federation of Construction Industry Trade Unions. Many other workers have been serious injured, some permanently disabled.
The government has refused to recognize the Korean Government Employees Union and declared them an “illegal organization.” In September, the government mobilized thousands of riot police across the country to raid the union’s offices, shutting down 81 out of 251 local offices.
Nationwide, over 100 trade unionists have been jailed for carrying out organizing work.
The repression of trade union activity has come under some international scrutiny. After coming under international pressure, including from the International Labor Organization, the South Korean government has claimed to have passed labor reform legislation.
But far from carrying out the reforms workers and unions are demanding, the government has passed the Irregular Workers Bill, Industrial Relations Roadmap Agreement and OHS insurance bill, which continue to deny workers their fundamental rights.
The South Korean government also continues to negotiate the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement with the United States government. If passed, it will be Washington’s largest FTA since NAFTA and have a similar detrimental effect on workers and farmers in South Korea and the United States.
The next round of negotiations is scheduled for December in Montana, where demonstrations are planned. A sixth round will take place in January in South Korea. The fight against the FTA is a major national issue in South Korea and is an integral part of the upcoming general strike.
The KCTU—along with other organizations of workers, peasants, women, students and other sectors—has vowed to continue the struggle in defense of the rights of all workers in South Korea.
Statement of support from the ANSWER Coalition to the KCTU
Tuesday, Nov. 14
To our brothers and sisters at the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions:
The ANSWER Coalition (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) is a national U.S.-based organization struggling to defend the rights of working people at home and abroad.
We recognize that the U.S. government objective of imposing a new type of colonialism on the world is pursued through war, military intervention and occupation; through FTAs and global financial institutions such as the IMF and World Bank; and through support for repression carried out by compliant governments.
We send our support and solidarity to the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions in its efforts to organize for the rights of working people in South Korea, including the 2006 General Strike. We have joined with the KCTU in fighting the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement during negotiations in the United States and South Korea since last June, and we will continue to do so in the coming months.
The enclosed letter of support for the KCTU’s demands has been sent by the ANSWER Coalition to president Roh Moo Hyun, minister of labor Lee Sang-Soo, and minister of general administration and home affairs Lee Yong-Sup.
The ANSWER Coalition will be joining demonstrations taking place in the U.S. on the Nov. 15 International Day of Action, including the protest in San Francisco.
Letter from the ANSWER Coalition to the South Korean government
ANSWER Coalition
Act Now to Stop War & End Racism
1247 E St. SE, Washington DC 20003 USA
(202) 544-3389 Fax: (202) 544-9359
Web: www.ANSWERcoalition.org
Email: [email protected]
Tuesday, Nov. 14
Dear President Roh Moo Hyun:
The ANSWER Coalition-U.S. is writing to express its grave concern with regard to the South Korean government’s attack on labor unions and their members. We are actively working in support of the campaign launched by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, and in defense of the Korean Government Employees Union, Korean Federation of Construction Industry Trade Unions and other unions facing government repression.
Ten years ago in 1996 the South Korean government pledged to change its labor law to conform to guidelines of the Organization of Economic and Commercial Development and to international labor standards. Recently, the Committee on Freedom of Association of the International Labor Organization made specific recommendations for the revision of South Korean labor law.
Rather than implementing these changes, the South Korean government has intensified repression against labor unions and working people. The government has imprisoned over 100 labor unionists; has violently attacked labor demonstrations and strikes—leading to the injury of many and the death of Ha Joong Keun; has raided and shut down union offices; and has refused to recognize the Korean Government Employees Union. It excluded the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions from negotiations over new labor legislation, known as the “9-11 Deal,” a bill which falls far short of the reforms needed.
Furthermore, the South Korean government continues to negotiate a bilateral free trade agreement with the United States that will negatively impact workers and farmers in South Korea, as NAFTA negatively impacted workers and farmers in Mexico, Canada and the U.S.
The A.N.S.W.E.R. Coalition demands:
Stop trade union repression, stop the attacks on the Korean Government Employees Union and Korean Federation of Construction Industry Trade Union
Release all jailed unionists
Recognize the Korean Government Employees Union
Rescind the Industrial Relations Roadmap Agreement—Pass real labor reform legislation
Stop the Irregular Workers Bill – Full labor rights for irregular workers
No to the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement
Brian Becker
National Coordinator
ANSWER Coalition
Sarah Sloan
National Staff Director
ANSWER Coalition
CC: Lee Sang-Soo, Minister of Labor
Lee Yong-Sup, Minister of General Administration and Home Affairs
Lee Changgeun, International Director, Korean Confederation of Trade Unions
KCTU video
The KCTU has produced an English-language video on the situation for unions in South Korea. Click here to watch the video.
