Rail Workers' Union to Hold 'General Strike' on the 14th, First Time in 4 Years Since 2019

The Korea Railroad Workers' Union (hereinafter referred to as the Railroad Union) will go on a general strike on the 14th. This general strike is the first in four years since 2019.

According to the Railroad Union on the 13th, the union plans to carry out the first general strike from 9 a.m. on the 14th to 9 a.m. on the 18th.

Due to the general strike, it is expected that passenger trains such as KTX and freight trains will inevitably reduce operations by about 20% to 60% compared to normal times.

Previously, the Railroad Union held six working-level negotiations and one main negotiation with management since July. However, as both sides remained at an impasse, no agreement was reached, and the mediation by the Central Labor Relations Commission also failed.

The general strike became visible after 64.4% of voters participating in the strike action vote held from the 28th to the 30th of last month approved (passed) the strike. Subsequently, the Railroad Union held a press conference at the Railroad Hall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the 7th, effectively confirming the general strike.

Currently, the Railroad Union has put forward demands including the expansion of public railroads, full implementation of the 4-shift 2-team system, urging sincere negotiations, and the fulfillment of agreements.

National Railway Workers' Union Chairman Choi Myung-ho held a press conference regarding the general strike at the Railway Union office in the Railway Hall on the 7th. Photo by Yonhap News

If these demands are not met during the general strike period until the 18th, there remains the possibility of a second general strike.

A Railroad Union official emphasized the significance of the general strike, saying, “The 4-shift 2-team system is a work system designed to improve the extreme working conditions of field workers and is also an agreement between labor and management. However, even after four years since the agreement, full implementation has been delayed. The general strike will proceed as an urgent demand to ensure the safety of field workers.”

The general strike demanding the full introduction of the 4-shift 2-team work system was also held in 2019. At that time, the Railroad Union launched an indefinite general strike starting November 20, but withdrew the strike on the 25th of the same month after reaching a negotiation settlement with management.

However, during that general strike period, the operation rate of freight trains dropped to 20.7%, causing disruptions in logistics transportation, and the operation rates of passenger trains were reduced to 69.6% (regular trains) to 87.5% (KTX) compared to normal times, causing inconvenience to railroad users.

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