Jungnowi, Korean GM Union's Dispute Mediation Application 'Withdrawal Request'..."COVID-19 Concerns"

Korea GM Management Negotiators in Self-Quarantine
Central Labor Relations Commission: "Concerns of COVID-19 Infection During Meeting"
Union: "No Plans to Withdraw Mediation Request"

The Incheon Bupyeong-gu Korea GM Bupyeong plant came to a halt last September due to a union strike (Photo by Yonhap News).

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ji-hee] As the Korean GM union filed a labor dispute adjustment application with the Central Labor Relations Commission (CLRC) to initiate a legal strike, the CLRC requested the withdrawal of the application. This is due to the fact that the company's negotiation committee member for this year's wage and collective agreement entered self-quarantine over concerns of COVID-19 infection.

According to industry sources on the 8th, the CLRC sent an official letter titled "Request for Cooperation Due to COVID-19 Confirmed Case" to the Korean GM union the day before. In the request, the CLRC stated, "We received the adjustment application submitted by the union on the 4th and are conducting a preliminary investigation to hold an adjustment meeting. However, on the same day, it was confirmed that a family member of the Korean GM company's negotiation committee member tested positive for COVID-19, and the employee is currently in self-quarantine."

Furthermore, the CLRC added, "Other employees who had frequent contact with the affected employee and are at high risk of infection may also be restricted from entering the CLRC building for the time being, and there is a possibility that labor and management representatives and adjustment committee members could be infected during the adjustment meeting process. Therefore, we request that the adjustment application be withdrawn for now and be resubmitted once the COVID-19 infection concerns within Korean GM have been resolved."

The Korean GM union has conducted ten rounds of negotiations with the management until the 3rd of this month but failed to narrow the gap in positions and is pushing for a strike. Since the strike vote held among all union members on the 1st and 2nd of this month resulted in an 80% approval rate, if the CLRC decides to suspend the adjustment, the union will secure the right to strike legally.

For now, the union plans to proceed with the adjustment process as scheduled. The Korean GM union stated, "We do not plan to withdraw the (adjustment application) immediately and will attend the meetings as planned." Given the confirmed differences in positions through multiple rounds of negotiations, it appears the union is focusing on securing the right to strike to pressure the management.

In this year's wage and collective agreement negotiations, the union is demanding a basic monthly wage increase of 120,304 KRW and a performance bonus payment of 400% of the ordinary wage plus 6 million KRW. They also insist that the company present future plans, including measures to increase production volume at Bupyeong Plant 2 and domestic sales since 2022. On the other hand, the management argues that due to difficulties in company operations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is not easy to accept such demands as they are.

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