Kim Chang-sung, 3rd Chairman of the Korea Employers Federation, Passes Away at 88

[Asia Economy Reporter Su-yeon Woo] Kim Chang-seong, the 3rd President of the Korea Employers Federation (Honorary Chairman of Jeonbang), passed away on the 14th due to an illness. He was 88 years old.

The late Chairman Kim was born in 1932 in Pohang, Gyeongbuk, and graduated from Gyeonggi High School and Waseda University. He served as the 3rd President of the Korea Employers Federation from February 1997 to February 2004 for seven years. His father, the late Chairman Kim Yong-ju, also served as the 1st President of the Korea Employers Federation (July 1970?February 1982).

The late Kim Chang-sung, former chairman of the Korea Employers Federation

During his tenure as KEF president, Kim worked to minimize conflicts between the government and labor as well as between labor and management during the early 1997 labor law revision process. He contributed to establishing cooperative labor-management relations so that the new labor law could be implemented in the industrial field without major side effects.

In early 1998, to overcome the severe economic crisis and social turmoil caused by the IMF bailout at the end of 1997, he agreed to the "Tripartite Joint Declaration for Overcoming the Economic Crisis," laying the foundation for an early exit from the economic crisis.

He also established Korea’s first "Basic Training Course for Court-appointed Managers" to help many companies facing bankruptcy at the time to recover, fostering excellent manager candidates through education in specialized legal knowledge and the latest management knowledge.

Until shortly before retiring as KEF president, he devoted himself to restoring jobs lost due to the economic crisis. As a result of continuously promoting dialogue between labor and management for job recovery, he led the signing of the "Social Agreement for Job Creation," the first agreement made after the IMF bailout.

Meanwhile, the late chairman was also recognized for contributing to the development of the textile industry, having served as chairman of the Korea Federation of Textile Industries and the Korea Spinners’ Association as the chairman of Jeonbang.

The funeral hall is set up in Room 1 of the Catholic University Eunpyeong St. Mary’s Hospital Funeral Hall. The funeral procession will be held on Saturday, October 17, at 6:45 a.m., and the burial site is the Catholic Yongin Park Cemetery. Surviving family members include his younger brother Kim Moo-sung (former Saenuri Party leader), children Kim Mi-sa, Kim Soo-young, Kim Mi-young, and sons-in-law Seo Chang-rok and Kim Jeong-min.

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