Car Groups Unite in Warning: "Passage of Labor Union Law Amendment Will Cause Confusion"

The automotive industry, research institutions, associations, and parts industry have expressed concerns about the currently proposed amendments to the Labor Union Act.

On the 29th, the Korea Automobile Industry Association exchanged opinions from various sectors regarding the proposed amendments to Articles 2 and 3 of the Labor Union Act at the 33rd Annual Automobile Industry Development Forum. This association is a coalition of 10 organizations related to the automotive industry, including the Korea Automobile Mobility Industry Association, which has completed vehicle manufacturers as members, the Automobile Industry Cooperative, the Automotive Parts Industry Promotion Foundation, the Korea Automotive Technology Institute, the Korean Society of Automotive Engineers, the Hydrogen Convergence Alliance, the Hyundai-Kia Cooperation Association, the Korea GM Cooperation Association, the KG Mobility Cooperative, and the Autonomous Driving Industry Association.

On the stairs in front of the National Assembly main building on the 31st of last month, Hyun Jeong-hee, Chairperson of the Public Transport Workers' Union, is speaking at the press conference titled "National Assembly, Respond to the Amendment of Articles 2 and 3 of the Labor Union Act."

Kang Nam-hoon, chairman of the association (and president of the Automobile Mobility Industry Association), said in his opening remarks, "If the bill passes, it will force collective bargaining between subcontractor employers and subcontractor workers who have no employment contract relationship under the ambiguous standard of 'substantial control,' causing confusion in the labor market," adding, "Liability for damages caused by illegal strikes will also be limited."

He mentioned the rapidly changing and highly competitive nature of the automotive industry and emphasized, "We must stop the amendment that worsens labor-management relations and focus on strengthening competitiveness through labor and management cooperation based on prompt legislation allowing alternative work and prohibiting workplace occupation to rationally reform the confrontational and combative labor-management order."

Professor Lee Jung of the Graduate School of Law at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies pointed out that disputes are increasing as the concepts of workers and employers have changed recently in platform industries and others. Professor Lee said, "The Japanese Asahi Broadcasting case was a judgment made under a very special environment where the primary contractor's employees and subcontractor employees were united under the primary contractor's command, with no distinction between friend and foe. Applying this special case judgment directly to general primary-subcontractor relationships results in an excessive expansion of employer status, the application of dispatch law principles in determining employer status in primary-subcontractor relationships, and unresolved issues such as whether normative effects arise when collective agreements are concluded, causing concerns about confusion in the labor market."

Dong-geun Lee, Executive Vice President of the Korea Employers Federation (third from the right), is speaking at the joint statement by industry groups urging the suspension of the submission of the amended Labor Union Act to the plenary session, held on the 25th of last month at the Korea Employers Federation building in Mapo-gu, Seoul.

He added, "Due to the special nature of Korea's labor law system, expanding employer status could unilaterally impose unexpected damages on employers, so caution is necessary."

Professor Sung Dae-gyu of Kangwon National University Graduate School of Law stated, "The intention and actions of union members who merely participate in illegal dispute actions cannot be evaluated the same as those who organize, lead, and directly cause damages through illegal dispute actions, so it is reasonable to exclude liability for simply participating union members."

He also argued, "The decisions and organized direct actions of union officials and individual union members for 'dispute actions' manifest in the same place, under the same purpose, and in the same form, and from a legal perspective, such manifestations can be evaluated as a unified dispute action by the labor union as a single entity. Liability for damages caused by illegal dispute actions can be attributed to the labor union, and ultimately, union officials, actively participating union members, and the labor union are in a joint and several liability relationship for damages caused by illegal dispute actions."

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