Conflict Over Director Appointment Disrupts Labor Negotiations... Korea Financial Telecommunications & Clearings Institute Heads Toward Strike

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[Image source=Yonhap News]

The Korea Financial Telecommunications and Clearings Institute (KFTC), which had been embroiled in controversy over a 'parachute appointment' from the Bank of Korea (BOK), has ultimately decided to proceed with strike procedures. This decision came as negotiations between the two institutions to prevent the practice of a former BOK official directly becoming the new KFTC president effectively collapsed, and delays in wage and collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) at the KFTC have caused extreme dissatisfaction among employees.

According to the BOK and KFTC on the 13th, the KFTC labor union plans to declare a breakdown in wage negotiations to management as early as the 16th and file for mediation with the Central Labor Relations Commission. Choi Jaeyoung, chairman of the KFTC union, stated, "We have decided to take the necessary steps to secure legal strike rights so that we can proceed with strikes or work stoppages."

The reason for the union's decision is that the appointment of a successor to the current KFTC president Kim Haksoo, whose term ended on the 6th of last month, has been delayed, and wage negotiations have stalled due to a management vacuum.

Under current regulations, the 'President Candidate Recommendation Committee (PCRC)' that recommends candidates for the president is composed of five members appointed by the general meeting of member banks. Until now, the BOK, which effectively chairs the member banks' general meeting, has appointed all five members. As a result, since the KFTC was established in 1986, 13 out of 14 presidents have been former BOK officials. A KFTC official said, "Most employees have a strong aversion to parachute appointments from the BOK."

During Governor Lee Juyeol's tenure at the BOK, an attempt was made in February to form the PCRC, but after opposition from the KFTC, the schedule was postponed until after the inauguration of the new governor. At that time, the BOK also expressed willingness to negotiate with the KFTC to add one member to the PCRC who could represent the opinions of KFTC members. During negotiations, the KFTC union side demanded that at least two of the five committee members include the 'KFTC president recommender' and a 'KFTC employee representative' to ensure minimal procedural fairness, but the BOK reportedly rejected this.

Chairman Choi of the union pointed out, "Even if the PCRC is formed immediately, it will take at least two to three months to appoint a president. We cannot wait endlessly when no significant action has been taken since Governor Lee Changyong of the BOK took office." A BOK official said, "There are differences in opinion with the KFTC side, so negotiations are ongoing. We plan to proceed as quickly as possible."

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