POSCO's primary contractor and subcontractors faced each other at a formal bargaining table. This is the first time since POSCO's founding that in-house subcontracted workers have formally bargained with the primary contractor.
Since receiving a determination from the Gyeongbuk Regional Labor Relations Commission in March recognizing POSCO's employer status in relation to the subcontractors' union, POSCO's subcontractors' union has demanded bargaining with POSCO. Afterward, with the two sides far apart on bargaining agendas and procedures, the start of talks became uncertain, and the POSCO subcontractors' union pursued procedures to secure the legal right to strike.
According to the POSCO In-house Subcontractors Gwangyang Chapter of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) Metal Workers' Union (hereafter the subcontractors' union) on the 14th, at 2 p.m. that day, POSCO and the subcontractors' union held their first introductory session for bargaining at the subcontractors' union office at POSCO's Gwangyang steelworks. Ten subcontractors' union officials and six POSCO officials attended.
At the first bargaining session, labor and management discussed basic bargaining procedures and industrial safety agendas. They did not discuss agendas such as wage increases, which had been a source of conflict.
At the meeting, a management representative conveyed the position that "we hope this will serve as an opportunity to communicate so that no mishaps occur in terms of industrial safety as we begin bargaining." A union representative also conveyed a demand for management to improve the environment to ensure industrial safety, along with the request that "it would be good to address direct employment in terms that both labor and management can accept going forward."
Until now, labor and management have differed on basic bargaining principles, including bargaining frequency and venue. Even in six working-level meetings held after the National Labor Relations Commission decided to halt mediation, the two sides focused on discussing bargaining procedures.
The subcontractors' union is demanding weekly sessions, alternating between the Gwangyang steelworks and venues preferred by management. POSCO, by contrast, is proposing talks every other week.
This introductory bargaining session took place as the POSCO subcontractors' union entered the final stage of securing the right to strike. For the union to conduct a legal strike, collective bargaining must break down, the dispute must go through mediation by the National Labor Relations Commission, and a membership vote must approve industrial action.
From the 10th of this month through the previous day, the subcontractors' union held a membership vote on industrial action regarding bargaining with POSCO as the primary contractor. Of 1,172 participants, 1,080 voted in favor, recording a 92.1% approval rate and securing the legal right to strike. Last month, in an application for mediation to the National Labor Relations Commission, the subcontractors' union received a decision of "mediation halted."
In this context, POSCO indicated to the subcontractors' union that it would attend an introductory session, leading to the talks.
Earlier, on the 11th, POSCO also held an introductory session with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) National Plant Construction Union (the Plant Union), which is composed of day laborers. The Plant Union has demanded bargaining since April, after the Gyeongbuk Regional Labor Relations Commission recognized POSCO's employer status.
In relation to this, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) believes that legal risks—such as the first-instance rulings in the 8th and 9th lawsuits to confirm employee status and the 1st and 2nd wage differential claims against POSCO—likely weighed on the primary contractor. The rulings are scheduled for the 20th.
The wage differential claims are lawsuits filed by workers who, after winning the 1st and 2nd lawsuits to confirm employee status in 2022 and being converted to regular employees, sought to address wage gaps with existing regular employees.
It also appears that management considered the possibility that, if the union, having completed procedures to secure the right to strike, actually goes on strike, the burden of production disruptions would increase. About 400 workers belong to the POSCO In-house Subcontractors Gwangyang Chapter. They mainly perform direct tasks in steel production plants, such as moving and loading steel materials and transporting molten metal.
Kang Han-ju, planning director of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), said, "Now that the bargaining table is open, we will conduct talks to maximize the rights of our members," adding, "Given the possibility that management could claim a lack of employer status on individual agendas, we are also keeping in mind the possibility of entering into industrial action depending on management's stance."