It has been tallied that there have been 400 collective bargaining demands to date, nearly two months since 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. Of these, about half—177 cases—occurred in the public institutional sector, including the government, local governments, public institutions, and local public enterprises.
The government on the 30th held a joint Emergency Economic Headquarters and ministers' meeting on economic affairs and released the main direction for responding to key labor issues, which included these points.
Of the 400 total bargaining demands received by the 27th, 223 were in the private sector and 177 were in the public sector. In the public institutional sector, local governments accounted for the most with 112 cases, followed by public institutions (46), the central government (11), and local public enterprises (8).
In the public institutional sector, 13 entities—including Busan Transportation Corporation, Korea Asset Management Corporation (KAMCO), and Hwaseong City—which found employer status based on their own judgment or labor commission rulings, have begun the collective bargaining process. These institutions have announced the receipt of bargaining demands, and 11 of them have proceeded to the stage of confirming the unions that will participate in bargaining.
The government said it is "determining employer status for each bargaining pattern through labor commission rulings and advice from the judgment support committee, and proceeding with the bargaining process in a stable manner in accordance with procedures under the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act," adding that "even when employer status is weak, we are operating a separate labor-government consultative body to improve treatment."
The government also plans to form 11 committees within the Economic, Social and Labor Council and put them into operation starting next month. By committee, the topics are: ▲ labor-management win-win committee for the transition to artificial intelligence (AI) ▲ regional employment and economic support committee in response to the downturn in the oil and chemical industries ▲ study group on institutional improvements to raise workers' real income ▲ study group exploring the sustainability of the K-culture industry ▲ study group on a just transition in the coal and thermal power generation industries. In addition to the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL), individual ministries such as the Ministry of Economy and Finance, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, Ministry of SMEs and Startups, and Ministry of Climate, Energy and Environment will attend.
The government also plans to push ahead this year with its previously released "public sector measures to improve treatment for subcontracted and non-regular workers," including preparing guidelines. The plan centers on paying a "fairness allowance," differentiated by period, to fixed-term workers employed for less than one year in the public sector, and guaranteeing public sector subcontract terms of at least two years.