Abolishing "Priority Hiring for Employees' Children" Proposed by Management, Opposed by Labor

Kia Labor-Management Wage Negotiations Face Differences
Authorities Issue Correction Order Amid Negative Public Opinion
Union: "Cannot Amend Collective Agreement During Wage Negotiations"

Kia management proposed removing the employee children priority hiring clause to the labor union during this year's wage negotiations. This clause has received negative public opinion and was ordered to be abolished by the government. Previously, the union at the affiliate Hyundai Motor had proposed removing the clause first.

According to comprehensive reporting by this outlet, Kia management included in their second proposal on the 20th the statement, "After revising Article 27 of the collective agreement regarding priority hiring, the new employee recruitment process will be conducted by the end of 2023."

Kia Headquarters, Yangjae-dong, Seoul / Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

Article 27 of the company's collective agreement concerns priority and special hiring, stipulating that children of in-house irregular workers, direct family members of union members who died from illness while employed, and children of retirees or long-term employees (over 25 years) are given priority in hiring. It also includes special hiring within six months for those who died due to work-related accidents or retired with disabilities of grade 6 or higher. Among these, management proposed removing the priority hiring of children of retirees and long-term employees, as well as separately established additional points.

The union opposed this as a 'deterioration plan.' Hong Jin-seong, head of the Metalworkers' Union Kia branch (hereafter Kia union), said during negotiations, "(The company's proposal) lacks substance and instead of withdrawing the deterioration plan, it was presented in a more concrete form," and demanded, "Withdraw the deterioration plan." It was also reported that the union argued it was inappropriate to handle amendments to the collective agreement during this year's wage negotiations.

This clause is considered effectively obsolete as it is not actually enforced. However, the government views such 'employment inheritance' clauses as violating laws that guarantee equal employment opportunities, and last year conducted investigations at major workplaces nationwide, issuing corrective orders. Kia labor and management also received such orders but failed to comply, resulting in a case being filed in April this year.

EV9 produced at Kia Gwangmyeong Plant

Hyundai Motor labor and management abolished the clause during the 2019 wage collective bargaining. Prior to that, the union had decided to remove the clause at a temporary delegates' meeting in 2018. This was a measure taken in consideration of negative external perceptions. While special hiring for families of industrial accident victims was ruled lawful by the Supreme Court, priority hiring of children of retirees and long-term employees has been criticized as contrary to both the law and public sentiment. Most workplaces that received corrective orders have amended or removed the clause. The Metalworkers' Union, the higher-level organization of the Kia union, also set a policy in January this year to revise the clause.

As conflicts between labor and management over the priority hiring clause intensify, wage negotiations appear to be at a standstill. According to Kia management's second proposal, the basic salary would increase by 111,000 KRW, with a performance bonus of 400% plus 10.5 million KRW, and gift certificates worth 250,000 KRW, similar to the previously settled Hyundai Motor agreement. However, the proposal excludes company stock worth approximately 2.79 million KRW given as a performance bonus. Like Hyundai Motor, the extension of retirement age will be negotiated after relevant laws are amended, and the company stated it cannot accept demands such as reinstatement of dismissed workers or a four-day workweek. Conversely, the company's request to improve the wage system by job category was also rejected by the union.

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