Tripartite Commission Urges Korean Confederation of Trade Unions to Return: "Let's Discuss Continuous Employment"

The Economic, Social and Labor Council (ESLC), a social dialogue body directly under the president involving labor, management, and government, urged the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) to return on the 20th. The KCTU has not participated in the ESLC for about two months in protest against the harsh crackdown on union officials under its umbrella.

In a press release issued that day, the ESLC requested the KCTU to return, stating, "We hope that labor, management, and government will continue to discuss various agendas related to continued employment openly and sincerely together."

Amid the Korean Federation of Trade Unions (KCTU) declaring its withdrawal from the Economic, Social and Labor Council, Kim Dong-myeong, the chairman, is speaking at the KCTU official press conference held in front of the Presidential Office in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the morning of June 6. The KCTU announced that it will launch a full-scale struggle to "judge the Yoon Seok-yeol administration."
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Regarding the KCTU’s recent national petition to amend the law to raise the statutory retirement age to 65, the ESLC opposed it, saying, "If the retirement age is extended by law as the labor sector claims, it could become a significant barrier and source of despair for young people who want to find employment."

They added, "Because wages are strongly seniority-based and the labor market is rigid due to restrictions on dismissals, companies find it difficult to bear this burden," and argued, "With a large proportion of the baby boomer generation, if we do not respond well to rapid aging, not only will the growth rate decline, but fiscal burdens will also snowball."

The ESLC launched the 'Super-Aged Society Continued Employment Research Group' on the 27th of last month and is conducting related discussions. Continued employment refers to allowing people to keep working even after reaching retirement age, encompassing retirement age extension, abolition, and reemployment.

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