Speeding Up One-Point Social Dialogue to Overcome COVID-19... Expected to Open as Early as Next Week

Chairman Kim Myung-hwan of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions./Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporters Kwangho Lee, Bokyung Kim, Donghoon Jung] The 'one-point' social dialogue aimed at overcoming the COVID-19 crisis is expected to gain momentum. This follows the Korea Federation of Trade Unions (KFTU) abruptly announcing on the 11th that it will participate in the one-point social dialogue.

However, due to significant differences in positions between the two major trade union federations, reaching an agreement is expected to be difficult. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) has proposed key agenda items such as a ban on layoffs, full employment guarantees, and expansion of the social safety net, but it is uncertain whether the government and business sectors will accept these. The expansion of nationwide employment insurance is also expected to be on the agenda.

Kim Myung-hwan, Chairman of the KCTU, said at a press briefing held on the 12th at the KCTU meeting room in Jeong-dong, Seoul, "We appreciate and welcome KFTU's decision to participate yesterday (the 11th)," adding, "We will do our best to enhance national solidarity and cooperation with KFTU." He further stated, "We hope the schedule will be expedited under the Prime Minister's Office," and "We plan to start detailed consultations with KFTU soon."

Regarding this, a Prime Minister's Office official said, "We plan to coordinate the schedule through working-level consultations with the two major trade unions this week," adding, "We will strive to enable participation of six parties including the two major trade unions, the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Korea Employers Federation, and the Minister of Employment and Labor, aiming for next week."

The one-point social dialogue refers to a temporary tripartite dialogue conducted outside the Economic, Social and Labor Council (ESLC), a social dialogue body directly under the President, to achieve a 'social grand compromise' in response to the COVID-19 situation. The KCTU, which does not participate in the ESLC, proposed this, and it has been promoted centered on Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In the one-point social dialogue, the labor sector is expected to raise issues such as maintaining full employment, banning layoffs, and the recently highlighted nationwide employment insurance system.

Chairman Kim explained, "If maintaining full employment is a premise, the social safety net, including nationwide employment insurance for livelihood security, will be expanded, so we plan to propose maintaining full employment," adding, "We will officially propose including nationwide employment insurance."

He emphasized, "Due to the characteristics of Korean society, in fact, less than half of the workers covered by so-called employment insurance actually benefit," and said, "Even amid COVID-19, how much the sweat of delivery workers supports our society. We need to seriously discuss completely changing the system for employment insurance for special types of workers (special employment), and it should become a core agenda of the COVID-19 tripartite consultation."

Earlier, the KFTU stated in a position paper released on the 11th, "After a long leadership meeting regarding social dialogue to overcome the COVID crisis, we decided to participate in the one-point dialogue." The KFTU had a negative stance toward social dialogue conducted outside the ESLC. At the Central Executive Committee meeting on the 29th of last month, the KFTU did not reach a conclusion on whether to participate in the one-point social dialogue and delegated the decision to the executive branch.

A KFTU official said, "We have had intense internal discussions and deliberations about the problems of conducting social dialogue outside the ESLC," adding, "To overcome the immediate COVID crisis and prepare for a new society in the 'post-COVID' era, we decided to participate in the dialogue with all agendas and formats open."

However, even if the full group is formed, it is difficult to guarantee that labor and management will reach an agreement, as opinions may diverge on detailed issues. While the government has set the principle of 'employment maintenance,' it is realistically difficult to force companies to ban layoffs. A KCTU official responded, "To maintain employment, it is appropriate to restrict corporate layoffs. It may be a matter of nuance," and showed a firm stance by saying, "We need to put the unavoidable wage reductions due to management-related leave and shutdowns on the table for discussion."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.