GGM Wage and Collective Bargaining Talks Break Down... Jeonnam Labor Relations Commission Halts Mediation

Union to Hold Vote on Industrial Action

Aerial view of Gwangju Global Motors factory.

The atmosphere of a strike has become a reality at Gwangju Global Motors (GGM) as labor and management, who have struggled to reach an agreement during the wage and collective bargaining process, failed to narrow their differences even after two rounds of mediation by the labor authorities.

According to the GGM branch of the Gwangju-Jeonnam chapter of the Korean Metal Workers' Union on the 24th, the Jeonnam Regional Labor Relations Commission (Jinowi) decided to "suspend mediation" during the second mediation meeting between labor and management held on the afternoon of the 22nd.

Jinowi determined that it was difficult to present a mediation proposal due to the significant differences between labor and management, and made this decision accordingly. As a result, the union will inform its members of the situation and conduct a vote on whether to take industrial action regarding the wage and collective bargaining negotiations.

The GGM labor and management accepted Jinowi's recommendation to negotiate once a week both inside and outside the company, holding a total of six negotiation sessions, but failed to narrow their differences on issues such as wage increases and union activity policies.

The union demanded a monthly salary increase of 159,200 won, guarantees for free union activities, and the abolition of differential payment of the mutual cooperation contribution, while management maintained that an additional wage increase was not possible since wages had already been raised at the beginning of this year by 3.6%, reflecting the inflation rate, leading to a breakdown in negotiations.

A representative of the Gwangju-Jeonnam chapter of the Korean Metal Workers' Union stated, "If management's stance does not change, labor disputes will be inevitable," and added, "The channel for dialogue to reduce differences is always open."

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