Substitute Drivers Express Concerns Over "Hasty Processing" of SME Suitable Industry Designation

National Substitute Driver Union to Hold Press Conference in Front of the Tripartite Commission on the 12th

[Asia Economy Reporter Minyoung Cha] Regarding the decision on whether to designate the designated driver industry as a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) suitable industry, the National Designated Driver Labor Union urged the Win-Win Growth Committee to come up with effective measures, stating that "win-win growth excluding the rights of designated drivers and citizen safety is deceptive."

On the 12th, the National Designated Driver Labor Union held a press conference in front of the Win-Win Growth Committee in Jung-gu, Seoul, raising their voices, saying, "We deeply worry and sternly warn against the hasty handling of issues that have been postponed due to stakeholder agreement, including Kakao Mobility, T Map Mobility, and the Korea Designated Driver Federation."

The Win-Win Growth Committee has been reviewing the designation following the application for SME suitable industry designation by the Korea Designated Driver Federation, a designated driver company group, in May last year. According to the Act on the Promotion of Mutual Growth between Large and Small Enterprises (Mutual Growth Act), the committee must decide on the designation within one year from the application date.

The union stated, "As Kakao, which has grown into a representative platform company, has become a social issue due to its monopolistic tyranny, the National Assembly is discussing the Online Platform Fairness Act, and Kakao has belatedly announced measures to strengthen social responsibility, but its sincerity cannot yet be confirmed."

Kakao Mobility expanded the variable commission system nationwide in September last year and announced that it would actively prepare win-win plans through discussion channels with designated driver operators conducted by the Win-Win Growth Committee. However, Kakao Mobility reportedly did not respond to the union's demand to stop the 'Pro Service.' Regarding this, the union said, "We demanded the cessation of the program fee of 22,000 KRW per month extracted from drivers, but no response has been given."

The union also criticized existing designated driver companies, saying they are "pretending to be the weak." The union pointed out, "(Existing designated driver companies) are playing the victim, claiming that if Kakao lowers commissions, all small and medium enterprises will die," adding, "While more than 35%, and in some cases over half, of the designated driver fees received by drivers are taken as costs, they only focus on Kakao Mobility's intention to reduce commissions." They claim that existing designated driver companies are passing on designated driver insurance and program fees to drivers.

They emphasized, "Measures that disregard the rights of designated drivers and citizen safety will only exacerbate social problems," and urged, "The Win-Win Growth Committee should stop the regressive collusion discussions conducted under the pretext of win-win growth and present practical social measures." They also called for making the discussion process public and creating a forum for social debate.

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