"Hundreds of Requests at Once... 50 Staff Not Enough" Labor Relations Commission Overwhelmed by Principal Employer Negotiation Demands

One Week Since the Yellow Envelope Act Took Effect
Labor Relations Commission Begins Study on Staffing Adjustments Amid Rising Workload
Commission Tasked with Critical Role of Determining the Real Employer
Chronic Staff Shortages Persist...

"We expected a surge, but we did not anticipate hundreds of bargaining requests to pour in all at once. Although a workload spike is expected, everyone is working as 'fairly and swiftly as possible.'

This is what an official from the Central Labor Relations Commission said on March 16, marking one week since the enforcement of the Yellow Envelope Act (Amendments to Articles 2 and 3 of the Labor Union Act). Within just two days of the law coming into effect, a total of 453 subcontractor unions (representing 98,480 members) had submitted bargaining requests to the principal companies, and 39 subcontractor unions applied for bargaining unit separation. The bargaining unit separation process allows multiple unions within the same workplace to apply for recognition of separate bargaining rights. The Labor Commission must determine whether the principal company is considered an employer before deciding on the separation. According to the Labor Union Act, when a union requests bargaining, the employer must publicly announce this fact. However, most principal companies either do not consider themselves to be the employer of subcontractor unions or have decided to leave the determination to the Labor Commission. Consequently, it is highly likely that a significant number of labor and management parties will request the Labor Commission to mediate in these matters. Under the revised Labor Union Act enforcement decree, the Labor Commission must issue a decision regarding employer status and other related matters within 20 days of receiving the application.

Yonhap News Agency

On February 9, a month before the law took effect, the Labor Commission increased its workforce by adding 50 dedicated investigators, deploying them to the Central and regional Labor Relations Commissions. Depending on each commission's structure, these investigators began work in departments such as Bargaining Representative Determination, Adjudication, and Mediation. An official from the Central Labor Relations Commission said, "With the enforcement of the amended Labor Union Act, we expect a surge in cases related to multiple unions and unfair labor practices." The addition of 50 investigators amounts to about 20% of the entire investigator workforce—a substantial increase. However, given the rapid influx of bargaining requests and bargaining unit separation applications within just two days, concerns remain that this increase is insufficient. In fact, 50 is only half the 100 investigators initially requested by the Labor Commission. If these 50 are evenly distributed among the Central Labor Relations Commission and the 12 regional commissions, there would be fewer than four per commission.

The Labor Commission was already experiencing a severe staffing shortage even before the Yellow Envelope Act. The number of cases received by the Commission grew steadily from 17,927 in 2022 to 21,392 in 2023 and 23,969 in 2024, reaching 26,806 last year—a 49.5% surge over three years. As of the end of January this year alone, 6,718 cases had already been filed, representing a 46% increase compared to 4,592 cases in January last year, despite the Yellow Envelope Act not yet being in effect. In addition to collective labor-management disputes, the number of cases involving individual workers—such as workplace harassment, gender discrimination, and sexual harassment—has increased each year. However, the number of investigators at the Labor Commission increased only slightly, from 241 in 2022 to 250 before the recent expansion, a mere 3.7% rise. Even so, some existing investigators have now been assigned to handle Yellow Envelope Act-related matters as well.

The Labor Commission has also been tasked with mediating disputes between special employment workers and platforms. As a result, an accumulation of unresolved cases due to insufficient staffing may become a reality. Lee Byunghoon, Professor Emeritus of Sociology at Chung-Ang University, stated, "There is no doubt that the surge in bargaining requests following the enforcement of the Yellow Envelope Act will increase the workload of the Labor Commission. If the increased staffing proves insufficient, measures such as temporarily dispatching personnel from the Ministry of Employment and Labor should be considered in the short term, while further discussions on necessary staffing should also take place." Lee Junhee, Professor of Law at Kwangwoon University, explained, "As this is the first year of the revised law, and there are no precedents regarding the recognition of employer status or the scope of bargaining units, the staffing shortage at the Labor Commission will inevitably worsen. The scope and importance of their responsibilities are growing daily, making quantitative and qualitative expansion of the Labor Commission workforce essential." In response to these changing labor conditions, the Labor Commission has begun considering measures to restructure its functions and organization. An official from the Commission stated, "We are planning to establish rational organizational management measures, including effective restructuring of the Central and regional commissions, workforce adjustments, and streamlining of work processes."

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