"Save Hotels, Duty-Free Shops, and Travel Agencies"... Labor, Management, and Government Roll Up Sleeves for Employment Stability

Tripartite Commission to Launch 'Tourism and Service Industry Committee' on the 19th
Severe Employment Crisis Due to COVID-19... Seeking Solutions for Non-Regular Workers
Discussing Development Plans Through Win-Win Cooperation... "Will Gather Wisdom from Labor, Management, and Government"

Asia Economy DB=Photo by Honam Moon munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] A tripartite social dialogue has begun to seek employment stability measures and competitiveness enhancement plans for the tourism service industry, including hotels, duty-free shops, and travel agencies, which have been directly hit by the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic.

The "Tourism and Service Industry Committee," a sectoral committee under the Economic, Social and Labor Council, held its inauguration ceremony and was officially launched on the 19th at the Gyeongsanwi conference room.

The business conditions of the tourism and service sectors are becoming increasingly difficult due to the impact of COVID-19. Preventive measures against infectious diseases, such as minimizing face-to-face contact and social distancing, have led to a sharp decline in domestic and international travel demand.

Above all, employment issues are serious. The number of employment insurance subscribers has sharply decreased, and the number of workers in businesses has significantly declined. Last month, the number of employment insurance subscribers in business services, including travel agencies, and in accommodation and food service industries such as hotels, decreased by 26,000 and 3,000 respectively compared to the same month last year.

Considering these industry circumstances, the committee plans to focus discussions on "employment and labor conditions." First, it will identify the employment status of workers in hotels, duty-free shops, and travel agencies, and based on this, seek effective employment retention measures. Solutions will also be sought for non-regular workers belonging to outsourced and partner companies vulnerable to restructuring, not just regular employees.

Additionally, as a mid- to long-term discussion agenda, the committee will discuss development plans for the tourism and service industries through tripartite cooperation. Prior to the inauguration ceremony, labor and management in the hotel sector and the labor and management of Modetour signed their own joint agreements to unite efforts to overcome the crisis.

The committee chairperson is Roh Kwang-pyo, director of the Korea Labor and Society Institute. Three labor representatives and three management representatives from the hotel, duty-free shop, and travel agency industries participate in the discussions, along with two government members and three public interest members. The discussion period for the committee is one year from the launch date.

Chairperson Roh Kwang-pyo said, "Under the recognition that preventing skilled workers proficient in face-to-face services from leaving the industry is a prerequisite for the development of Korea's tourism and service industries, the tripartite parties will pool their wisdom."

Meanwhile, the event was attended by Park Yang-woo, Vice Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism; Lee Jae-gap, Minister of Employment and Labor; and Moon Sung-hyun, Chairperson of the Economic, Social and Labor Council.

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