Labor Expert: "The Most Needed General Election Pledge for Workers Is the Reintroduction of the Yellow Envelope Act"

Workplace Gapjil 119, Survey of 109 Labor Attorneys and Others
2nd Place Is Under 5 Employees and Application of Labor Standards Act to Special Employment

Labor experts identified the "re-promotion of the Yellow Envelope Act" as the most necessary pledge for workers in this year's general election.

On the 4th, the civic group Workplace Bullying 119 announced the results of a vote conducted from the 22nd to the 29th of last month among labor attorneys and lawyers affiliated with the organization on the "Top 10 Pledges Essential for Workers in 2024." Workplace Bullying 119 selected 23 pledges by analyzing reports received over the past year, and 109 out of 189 labor attorneys and lawyers participated in the vote, each selecting up to five pledges. As a result, 66.1% (72 respondents) answered that the "re-promotion of the Yellow Envelope Act" was the most necessary pledge.

On February 21 last year, Lee Jung-mi, the representative, along with members of the Justice Party, held a press conference for the passage of the Yellow Envelope Act at the Environment and Labor Committee in front of the National Assembly main building in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

The so-called "Yellow Envelope Act," an amendment to the Labor Union and Labor Relations Act, expands the scope of employers and strike actions in labor-management relations, strengthens the responsibility of primary contractors for subcontracted workers, and limits the scope of damages against striking workers.

Although the bill passed the National Assembly plenary session last November led by the opposition party, it was nullified when President Yoon Suk-yeol exercised his veto power. Experts affiliated with Workplace Bullying 119 pointed out that if the primary employer exercises substantial and specific control over the working conditions of subcontracted workers, they should bear the obligation of collective bargaining under the Labor Union Act.

The second most selected pledge after the "re-promotion of the Yellow Envelope Act" was "full application of the Labor Standards Act to all workers, including those in workplaces with fewer than five employees and special employment types" (63 respondents, 57.8%). Currently, the Labor Standards Act does not apply to workplaces with fewer than five employees due to business burden reasons, excluding provisions on working hours, annual leave, suspension and overtime pay, dismissal restrictions, unfair dismissal relief applications, and workplace harassment.

Additionally, special employment workers and platform workers are not covered by the Labor Standards Act. As concerns have been raised that this legal blind spot is exacerbating labor condition polarization, both the Ministry of Employment and Labor and political parties have proposed policies to expand the application of the Labor Standards Act to workplaces with fewer than five employees, but no significant progress has been made so far.

Other pledges identified include ▲ prohibition of the use of irregular workers for continuous and regular tasks ▲ introduction of the ABC test (verification criteria to classify workers as business operators) and placing the burden of proof on employers when determining worker status ▲ reduction of the weekly overtime limit from 12 hours to 8 hours and setting a daily overtime limit ▲ application of dismissal restriction provisions to workplaces with fewer than five employees and special employment types ▲ introduction of delayed interest on unpaid wages ▲ enrollment of all working people in employment insurance ▲ complete prohibition of comprehensive wage contracts ▲ institutionalization of cross-company bargaining by representative unions and introduction of an agreement effect expansion system.

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