By Eva Cheng
On November 4, president of the "illegal" Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, Kwon Young-kil, began an indefinite hunger strike in protest at recent manoeuvres by the government and employer groups to finalise a year-long industrial relations reform negotiation which entrenches South Korea's repressive labour laws.
The militant KCTU — which has led many strikes despite Seoul's continuous refusal to grant it registration since its formation last November — is organising solidarity strikes of its 500,000 members around the country. Meanwhile, preparations are under way for a national rally on November 10, expected to be attended by at least 200,000 workers. In an appeal letter to workers, Kwon said that "The rally is expected to be one of the biggest gatherings since the historic events in 1987", when Korean workers mobilised on a massive scale for weeks on end.
These actions will end the KCTU's month-long boycott of the Presidential Commission on Industrial Relations Reform, formed earlier this year by President Kim Young-sam as part of Seoul's efforts to win membership of the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development.
During the boycott, the commission finalised over 100 amendments (including restrictive new additions), and showed no sign of responding to workers' demands that the repressive core legislation at least be softened.
A wide variety of industrial action is already deemed "illegal" in South Korea, with employers able to charge workers of "interfering with business" under the Criminal Code. The employers are now pushing for a ban on all "third party" interventions which, if liberally defined, would give them wide scope to further undermine workers' ability to defend themselves.
Also proposed are tighter restrictions on dismissed workers retaining trade union membership and, therefore, representation and support. As well, the definition of essential services will be expanded to include banks and communication entities, binding workers in these sectors to compulsory arbitration and reducing their ability to defend their own interests. Other proposals affirm the ban on teachers and government employees organising their own trade unions or affiliating to a national trade union body, although they will be allowed to form token, non-trade union associations.
By lifting its boycott, the KCTU believe it will be better placed to stop the reactionary package from being passed.