KCTU Welcomes Passage of the 'Yellow Envelope Act'... Urges Ruling Party to Stop Requesting Presidential Veto

The Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU) welcomed the passage of the amendment to the Trade Union Act, known as the 'Yellow Envelope Act,' in the National Assembly plenary session and urged the ruling party to stop requesting the president to exercise the veto power.

On the 9th, the partial amendment to the Labor Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act was passed at the plenary session held at the National Assembly. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

On the 9th, the FKTU stated in a press release, "The long-awaited amendments to Articles 2 and 3 of the Trade Union Act, a longstanding issue for workers, have finally passed the National Assembly plenary session," adding, "With the amendment to the Trade Union Act, workers will no longer have to engage in unreasonable hide-and-seek to find the real employer in the complex multi-level subcontracting relationships. By negotiating with the real employer, unnecessary strikes and labor-management conflicts will also decrease."

The FKTU also said, "Over the past 30 years, workers such as Doosan Heavy Industries' Bae Dal-ho, Hanjin Heavy Industries' Kim Ju-ik and Choi Kang-seo, as well as workers at Yuseong and Ssangyong Motors and irregular workers, have tragically taken their own lives while suffering from indiscriminate damage compensation seizures imposed by the government and employers," adding, "We hope that with the clearer scope of liability for damages caused by strikes, no more workers will unjustly lose their lives."

Furthermore, the FKTU demanded that the government and the ruling party stop recommending the president to exercise the veto power. The FKTU said, "In June this year, the Supreme Court ruled that 'the excessive scope of liability for damages imposed on individual union members may undermine the constitutionally guaranteed rights of workers to organize and take collective action.' This confirmed the legitimacy of the amendment to the Trade Union Act," and added, "We hope the government and the ruling party will follow public opinion, comply with international labor standards, and accept the amendment to the Trade Union Act, which reflects the will of the legislative and judicial branches."

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