On May 1, workers from Homeplus will hold a "national conference" to urge for measures to normalize Homeplus, which has entered corporate rehabilitation proceedings.
On the 18th, the Homeplus branch of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions held a press conference and noted, "MBK Partners is deliberately trying to weaken the national corporation Homeplus through the sale and rehabilitation process," adding, "We will carry out nationwide solidarity struggles to prevent this."
The union claimed in a declaration of struggle that "MBK Partners announced the corporate rehabilitation process with the intention of deliberately turning Homeplus into a failing corporation to recover investment funds through liquidation."
They further criticized, "Announcing rehabilitation right after the 'Homeplus Sale' event, which has the highest sales of the year, delayed deliveries and blocked online shipment of products, causing a sharp decline in sales," stating, "This is a deliberate act of exacerbating management, putting workers, cooperating entities, and store owners in a survival crisis."
The union also said, "When public opinion worsened, they announced a grant without a specific plan or expense," adding, "If MBK had provided the funds to Homeplus before the announcement of corporate rehabilitation, we cannot help but wonder if we would be in the worst situation now."
The union reported that June 3 was seen as the "golden time" for the announcement of Homeplus's rehabilitation plan, predicting that "the rehabilitation plan for the asset and business division sale being pushed by MBK will not revive Homeplus but rather lead it toward liquidation and weaken its competitiveness."
An Su-yong, the head of the Homeplus branch, stated, "We will form a joint countermeasures committee to strengthen national solidarity and carry out strong actions for the normalization of Homeplus," adding, "Through the national conference, we will hold MBK Partners accountable and demand practical measures for corporate normalization."
Kang Woo-cheol, Chairperson of the Mart Labor Union, emphasized, "MBK has focused solely on recovering investment funds by selling profitable Homeplus stores. Recently, they are attempting a preemptive 'asset stripping' through the corporate rehabilitation process," warning, "If Homeplus is liquidated as per MBK’s plan, numerous workers and stakeholders from cooperating companies will be put in a survival crisis."