Six Major Economic Organizations Meet with Ruling Party Floor Leader Choo Kyung-ho to Request Blocking of 'Yellow Envelope Act'

On the 29th, six major economic organizations representing Korea's business community met with Choo Kyung-ho, the floor leader of the People Power Party, to request that he block the passage of the "Amendment to the Labor Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act" (Yellow Envelope Act).

On the afternoon of the 29th, People Power Party Floor Leader Choo Kyung-ho and other leadership members held a meeting at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, with representatives of six major economic organizations, including Sohn Kyung-shik, Chairman of the Korea Employers Federation, regarding the amendment bills to Articles 2 and 3 of the Labor Union Act (Yellow Envelope Act).
Attending the meeting were Sohn Kyung-shik, Chairman of the Korea Employers Federation; Jung Yoon-mo, Executive Vice President of the Korea Federation of SMEs; Lee Ho-jun, Executive Vice President of the Korea Federation of Medium-sized Enterprises; Park Dong-min, Executive Director of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Kim Go-hyun, Executive Director of the Korea International Trade Association; Lee Sang-ho, Head of the Economic and Industrial Division of the Korea Economic Association; and Lee Dong-geun, Executive Vice President of the Korea Employers Federation. [Image source=Yonhap News]

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The six economic organizations?Korea Employers Federation (KEF), Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Korea Economic Association, Korea International Trade Association, Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business, and Korea Federation of Medium-sized Enterprises?held an emergency meeting with Floor Leader Choo at the National Assembly main building and made this appeal regarding the Yellow Envelope Act, which passed the Environment and Labor Committee on the 22nd.

During the meeting, the six economic organizations expressed concern, stating, "As the opposition party has declared its intention to pass the Yellow Envelope Act at the plenary session of the National Assembly, a sense of crisis that could lead to mutual destruction in the industrial field is growing." They further argued, "If the scope of employers is indiscriminately expanded, subcontractor unions will continuously demand collective bargaining and engage in industrial actions, which will collapse the industrial ecosystem between primary and subcontractors and cause workers at partner companies to lose their jobs." They also criticized, saying, "The amendment effectively blocks claims for damages against illegal industrial actions, thereby encouraging extreme illegal strikes."

Son Kyung-sik, chairman of KEF, said, "We earnestly request active efforts to prevent the amendment from passing in the plenary session," and added, "If the opposition party unilaterally passes the amendment, please recommend that President Yoon Seok-yeol exercise his veto power."

This amendment was passed by the Environment and Labor Committee on the 22nd under the leadership of the opposition parties, including the Democratic Party of Korea. The Democratic Party, which holds a majority of seats, plans to push for its passage at the plenary session on the 1st of next month. The amendment includes provisions to strengthen the responsibility of primary contractors for subcontracted workers, expand the scope of industrial actions, and limit companies' claims for damages against striking workers, which has led the business community to continuously express concerns.

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