Care workers, including social workers, have launched joint bargaining with the government, targeting the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, and the Ministry of Education.
The care joint bargaining group of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) held a press briefing on the 17th under the theme "Real employer of care workers, come out."
As of the day, the care joint bargaining group sent official letters demanding collective bargaining to 57 principal employers, including central ministries, local governments, and public institutions. It also requested talks with nine institutions, including centers and nursing homes.
They said, "All key working conditions—such as the fee schedule that sets care workers' pay, staffing standards, work guidelines, and forms of employment—are determined by the central government's budget and directives," adding, "Each ministry, under the revised Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act, has a legal duty as a substantive employer to engage in collective bargaining."
The care joint bargaining group is chiefly demanding better treatment for care workers such as care aides and child care helpers. According to the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), excluding school-based care, the number of care workers is estimated at up to 2.5 million.
They plan to hold a "care workers rally" in front of the Blue House on the 21st to call for better treatment. In June, they will hold a press conference to declare a general strike, and in early July they plan to launch a general strike to win bargaining with principal employers.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) said the same day, "The government will engage in good-faith bargaining when employer status is recognized, in accordance with the interpretive guidance on the revised Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act (the yellow envelope law, a new labor law aimed at strengthening the bargaining rights of subcontract workers)."
It added, "Even if the likelihood of recognizing employer status is low, we will actively communicate with labor and consult on and pursue effective measures to improve working conditions and treatment in the public sector."