Lee Chang-yang "Daewoo Shipbuilding Subcontractor Union Strike Prolonged... Increasing Damage to Local and National Economy"

Minister Lee Chang-yang of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy is attending an extraordinary Cabinet meeting held at the Government Seoul Office in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 30th. At the meeting, the second supplementary budget bill worth 62 trillion won will be reviewed and approved. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Dongwoo Lee] Lee Chang-yang, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, expressed concern on the 14th regarding the strike by subcontracted workers at Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME), stating, "The damage to DSME, its partner companies, as well as the regional and national economy is increasing day by day."

During a briefing at the Government Seoul Office that morning, Minister Lee said, "If the strike prolongs, the difficulties faced by DSME, which is currently undergoing rehabilitation with public funds, will worsen."

He explained, "Due to the strike, the docks, which are key facilities of the shipyard, have been occupied, halting the launching or construction work of three ships under construction. As a result, DSME is estimated to be incurring daily sales losses of 25.9 billion KRW and fixed cost losses of 5.7 billion KRW, accumulating approximately 570 billion KRW in losses to date."

He added, "If the docks are paralyzed, not only will there be problems in the current process, but production disruptions will inevitably occur in both preceding and subsequent processes. If delivery deadlines are not met, delay penalties of 13 billion KRW per month will be incurred."

Minister Lee emphasized, "In the shipbuilding industry, where trust with shipowners is paramount, delays in delivery will lead to a decline in trust not only in DSME but also in our shipbuilding industry as a whole, raising concerns about negative impacts on future order opportunities. The government hopes that labor and management will promptly engage in dialogue and compromise to end this strike and establish a cooperative labor-management relationship based on mutual coexistence."

Earlier, the Metalworkers' Union Geoje-Tongyeong-Goseong Shipbuilding Subcontractors Branch (Subcontractors Branch) initiated a strike demanding a 30% wage increase, spreading labor-to-labor conflicts as the primary union urged the strike's suspension. The strike by the Subcontractors Branch has sparked controversy over worker representation, as only a very small fraction?about 1%?of all subcontracted workers at DSME are participating.

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