Bakery Workers at Paris Baguette Raise Voices to "Stop Division and Conflict Incitement"

Failure to Implement Headquarters-Level Wage Increase Within 3 Years
KCTU Claims Challenged by FKTU Union
Wages Up 39.2%, Welfare Benefits Improved

On the 13th, in front of the Paris Baguette headquarters building in Yangjae-dong, a Paris Baguette baker who is not affiliated with the union is holding a solo protest opposing the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions' rally and the instigation of conflict.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Hye-seon] Over 4,000 bakery workers affiliated with SPC Group expressed regret toward the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) Chemical Fiber Food Union and urged them to "stop dividing workers and inciting futile conflicts."

The PB Partners Labor Union under the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU) stated on the 14th, "The KCTU Chemical Fiber Union is disparaging the efforts and achievements of the legally recognized bargaining representative union and holding nationwide rallies, continuously fostering conflict and confusion," adding, "Their baseless propaganda and agitation are causing severe stress and anxiety not only to the 4,000-plus PB Partners union members but also to bakery workers who are not union members."

SPC Group recently announced the completion of the "implementation of social agreements" on the occasion of the 3rd anniversary of PB Partners, a subsidiary employing Paris Baguette bakery workers. Previously, Paris Baguette was subject to a special labor inspection and direct employment correction order by the Ministry of Employment and Labor in 2017 for illegally dispatching over 5,000 bakery workers.

PB Partners is a subsidiary established on January 22, 2018, by Paris Croissant to directly employ Paris Baguette bakery workers. It was created through social agreements involving many stakeholders, including the Paris Baguette franchise headquarters, franchise owners, bakery workers, political parties, and civic groups. The shares are held 51% by the franchise headquarters and 49% by the franchise owners' council. Paris Baguette has multiple unions established under both FKTU and KCTU.

However, the KCTU Chemical Fiber Union has called for improvements, claiming that SPC, the Paris Baguette headquarters, has not fulfilled the social agreement to raise bakery workers' wages to the headquarters' level within three years. In response, Jeon Jin-wook, chairman of the PB Partners union under FKTU, asserted, "Through union activities, we secured representative union status with the support of over 4,000 bakery workers and achieved many results over the past three years through continuous negotiations with the company," adding, "We have significantly improved labor conditions, including wages and welfare benefits."

The company also stated that it has completed 9 out of 11 demands according to the social agreement. Bakery workers' wages increased by a total of 39.2% over three years. The KCTU's claim of a "25% wage increase over three years" excludes the 16.4% wage increase at the time of direct employment from the subcontractor to PB Partners in 2018. Welfare provisions were also applied at the same level as Paris Croissant. Paid days off increased by more than 30%, from an average of 6 days per month in 2017 during the subcontractor period to 7.9 days last year.

They also argued that the KCTU union's claim that "no labor-management meetings or consultative bodies have been held" is untrue. According to the social agreement implementation details, the consultative body consists of the FKTU union, KCTU Chemical Fiber Union, Paris Baguette franchise owners' council, and Paris Croissant. The company continuously proposed forming the consultative body, including official meeting proposals, but these were canceled due to opposition from the union side. Currently, dialogues continue separately with each union.

Regarding the clause that all lawsuits confirming worker status against Paris Croissant be immediately withdrawn and that Paris Croissant bear the litigation costs, the union continued to pursue the lawsuits they had agreed to withdraw, which were eventually dismissed. The company also explained that it sent a formal request letter to the union to establish a "win-win harmony forum" involving both labor and management, but it was canceled due to union opposition.

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