Just one month after the the yellow envelope law, a new labor law aimed at strengthening the bargaining rights of subcontract workers (revised Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act) took effect, more than 1,000 subcontractor unions demanded bargaining with their prime contractors. During the same period, fewer than one in 10 prime contractors that received bargaining demands posted a public notice.
As of the previous day, 1,011 subcontractor unions with 146,000 members had demanded bargaining with 372 prime contractors, according to the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) on the 10th. Of them, 549 (54.3%) were affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), 382 (37.8%) with the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU), and 80 (7.9%) were unaffiliated.
Among the prime contractors that received bargaining demands, 216 (58%) were private companies, outnumbering 156 (42%) in the public sector. Only 33 business sites (8.9%) posted notices of the bargaining demands. By law, a prime contractor must post a notice for seven days upon receiving a bargaining demand, but many corporations are delaying notices, citing unclear issues or the need for legal review.
Even fewer—19—confirmed the unions demanding bargaining and completed public notices. Handong University, however, held an introductory meeting with a subcontractor union and decided to voluntarily engage in joint bargaining between the prime contractor and subcontractors.
Prime contractors and subcontractor unions are turning to the labor commission over the question of employer status. The commission received a total of 287 cases related to notices of bargaining demands and separation of bargaining units. So far, all six rulings by the commission on notices of bargaining demands recognized employer status. Of 19 applications for separation of bargaining units, 13 were approved and six were dismissed.
Corporations worry that if bargaining units continue to be separated, the bargaining burden will increase excessively. POSCO is set to bargain separately with four groups: the prime-contractor union, the FKTU Metal Workers' Federation, the KCTU Metal Workers' Union, and the Plant Construction Workers' Union. Incheon International Airport Corporation (IIAC) also separated subcontractor unions into three units for bargaining.
Meanwhile, prime contractors are also seeking opinions from the Collective Bargaining Decision Support Committee. The committee provides advice on employer status and responds to inquiries related to the the yellow envelope law, a new labor law aimed at strengthening the bargaining rights of subcontract workers, but its opinions have no binding effect. So far, 94 cases have been filed; 45 have been closed and 49 are under review.