STX Chosun Declares Hunger Strike... "Stop the Restructuring"

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] STX Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering workers have been on strike for 38 days demanding the reinstatement of all unpaid leave workers, and on the 8th, Lee Jang-seop, head of the STX Shipbuilding branch, declared a hunger strike.

On that day, the STX Shipbuilding branch held a press conference in front of the Gyeongnam Provincial Office, stating, "Guarantee the workers' right to survival and stop restructuring, including voluntary retirement."

Lee said, "With the scheduled end of the Jinhae shipyard shutdown on the 16th approaching, practical measures from Gyeongnam Province are necessary," adding, "Governor Kim Kyung-soo should meet with the union and fulfill his role."

Furthermore, Lee announced that he would begin an indefinite sit-in protest in front of the provincial office starting that day. The union went on strike last month on the 1st in response to the extension of unpaid leave.

STX Shipbuilding halted operations at the Jinhae shipyard for one month starting from the 17th of last month due to disruptions in shipbuilding work caused by the union strike.

When the union began the hunger strike, STX Shipbuilding requested through the company newsletter and text messages that the labor union "return to work promptly to resume operations."

The company explained, "As the strike prolongs, shipowners who had signed Letters of Intent (LOI) with us are contacting competing shipyards. If we lose trust in the market, it will take a long time and effort to restore our credibility."

Since June 2018, due to sluggish orders, about 500 production workers at STX Shipbuilding have been repeatedly taking unpaid rotational leave. As the union members have faced severe financial hardship entering the third year of rotational unpaid leave, they initiated a full strike on the 1st of last month, demanding the cessation of unpaid rotational leave.

STX Shipbuilding maintains the position that unpaid rotational leave cannot be stopped considering the volume of work the company holds and the speed of shipbuilding.

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