Construction Union: "We Will Not Tolerate the Yoon Administration's Talk of 'Geonpok'"

The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) National Construction Workers' Union (hereinafter Construction Union) held a large-scale rally in downtown Seoul to condemn the Yoon Seok-yeol administration for pressuring the labor sector.

On the afternoon of the 28th, members of the National Construction Workers' Union of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions held a rally on the road in front of Gyeongbokgung Palace in Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 28th, the Construction Union held a preliminary rally in front of the Government Seoul Office, the National Police Agency, and Jonggak Station in the afternoon, then marched to Sungnyemun. According to the organizers, about 46,000 union members attended the rally. During the event, they shouted slogans such as "Oppression means resistance" and "Let's crush it through struggle."

The Construction Union condemned the Yoon administration for leading the oppression of workers. Jeong Min-ho, the vice chairman of the Construction Union, said, "President Yoon Seok-yeol compared construction workers to 'construction gangs' and likened them to organized crime groups," adding, "It is questionable how much he knows about construction sites where workers work between life and death and pray to return home safely."

He also criticized the pressure on construction workers under the pretext of monthly fees. The monthly fee refers to a kind of gratuity given to tower crane operators by subcontractors, not by the tower crane companies that have employment relationships. The government views the collection of monthly fees from tower crane workers as coercion.

Vice Chairman Jeong said, "Monthly fees were given to induce workers to perform tasks that should not be done to shorten construction periods," and added, "If even monthly fees, which have the character of wages in civil law, are considered illegal, then what is legal?"

He also emphasized that they would intensify their struggle. The Construction Union stated, "We condemn the Yoon administration for trying to revive the economy by squeezing the blood of workers," and "We will not tolerate the Yoon administration and will play a role in bringing down President Yoon."

After marching to Sungnyemun, Construction Union members joined the KCTU rally. The KCTU planned to hold a resolution rally and march to the Yongsan Presidential Office.

The police deployed traffic officers along the rally and march routes. They also operated variable lanes around Sejong-daero and took measures such as diverting vehicles at congested intersections.

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