40s Delivery Agency Owner's Suicide... Will Cites "Depression Due to Union Harassment"

National Courier Union: "Primary Contractor Shifts Responsibility to Franchise"
"If There Is Responsibility After Our Own Investigation, We Will Take It"

A man in his 40s, Mr. A, who operated a courier agency in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, attempted an extreme act and was transferred to a hospital but ultimately passed away. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Ju-hyung] A man in his 40s who operated a courier agency in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province, died by suicide. The owner left a note stating that he had been harassed by members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions Service Federation National Courier Union (National Courier Union), to which he belonged.

According to the Gimpo Police Station in Gyeonggi Province on the 31st of last month, an apartment staff member in Gimpo City found the owner, Mr. A, collapsed in a flower bed at 11:53 a.m. on the 30th and reported it to the police. Mr. A was then transported to a nearby hospital by the 119 emergency medical team and received treatment but ultimately passed away.

Police investigation revealed that Mr. A operated a CJ Logistics courier agency in Gimpo. CCTV footage confirmed that he went up to a high floor of the apartment and took his own life. Two pages of a handwritten note on A4 paper were found in his pocket.

According to the contents of the note released by Mr. A’s bereaved family, he expressed his distress, saying, "The illegal work stoppages by union members, their disruptive actions without the right to strike, and the notification that they would continue even more intense union activities after the strike ended made each day of enduring alongside non-union members feel like hell."

A's suicide note. / Photo by Yonhap News

He continued, "I tried to pull myself together and hold on, hoping for better days, but their collective harassment and worsening work stoppages led my depression to peak, making it impossible to endure."

He added, "I hope you (union members) do not forget that someone chose the path of death because they could not endure because of you. Defamation, spreading false information, continuous harassment, and aggressive behavior caused mental pain, loss, alienation, depression, and social phobia to one person who experienced this."

After the contents of Mr. A’s note became known, the National Courier Union issued a statement saying, "The conflict between Mr. A and the union arose during the process of requesting improvements regarding the long-standing issue of delayed commission payments." They claimed, "The principal company shifted responsibility to the agency, turning it into a conflict between two weaker parties."

They added, "We are verifying the claims made by the Courier Agency Association and will take responsibility if necessary through our own investigation and will cooperate with the police investigation. As we are currently in a mourning period, the union will refrain from commenting on issues such as 'illegal strikes' and will announce its position later."

※ If you or someone around you is struggling with difficult feelings such as depression, you can receive 24-hour professional counseling through suicide prevention hotlines ☎1577-0199, Hope Call ☎129, Lifeline ☎1588-9191, and Youth Helpline ☎1388.

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