'Integrated' KORAIL, SR, general strike in December... Railroad union, industrial action resolution (comprehensive)

(Daejeon = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Jun-ho = The National Railroad Workers' Union announced a general strike in December due to the breakdown of wage and collective bargaining.

In a situation where Korea Railroad Corporation (KORAIL) and SR (SR) have been integrated since last September, there are concerns that if a general strike becomes a reality next month, the shock wave will be bigger than before when SR was partly responsible for alternative transportation.

According to the railroad union on the 5th, as a result of the industrial action vote held from the 2nd, 21,634 people participated (24,691 registered union members, voter turnout 87.6%), and 16,783 people were in favor (77.58%, 67.97% compared to registered members).

The railroad union held its third round of main negotiations on October 14th, but due to the breakdown of negotiations, it was decided to 'start a dispute' at an extraordinary delegates' meeting held on the 15th of the same month.

Industrial action voting is a procedure in which union members directly decide whether to enter into industrial action.

A majority of registered union members must agree to pass the bill, and abstentions are considered a dissenting vote.

The railroad union is demanding improvement in the promotion system and expansion of safety personnel.

A union official pointed out, “Currently, promotions are being made unfairly, excluding the field,” adding, “On-site union members are being pushed out of promotions, and promotion opportunities are being concentrated on the head office and managers.”

He added, "We acknowledge that the shortage of safety personnel at railway sites is already at a serious level and construction needs to be supplemented," adding, "However, the problem is not being solved due to the government's control over personnel."

As the industrial action has been approved, the union plans to require all union members to wear struggle vests and lanterns, fight for safe driving, and refuse to work on holidays.

If there is no progress in negotiations, we plan to launch an all-out struggle, including a general strike in December.

In this regard, KORAIL is making various preparations to secure the required maintenance ratio.

KORAIL plans to maintain the train operation rate at 56.9%, and the recently integrated SR plans to maintain 70%.

KORAIL predicts that it will be able to increase the operation rate from 66.8% at the time of the strike to 75.2% in 2024 by utilizing replacement workers in the integrated sector.

However, a KORAIL official said, “We will actively engage in additional negotiations with the union to avoid a general strike.”

Previously, there were concerns in the political and industrial circles that despite the various positive factors related to the integration between KORAIL and SR, if a strike occurs after the merger into one company, the national high-speed rail service may come to a halt.

In the National Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee's audit of KORAIL last month, voices, led by opposition party members, pointed out the possibility of a strike by the railway union.

At the time, People Power Party lawmaker Eom Tae-young pointed out, "There are concerns that this is a merger to strengthen the union's right to collective action, but KORAIL has gone on strike a total of four times since 2019. If there is a strike, will the Minister of Labor, who is the former union leader, resolve the issue? Not many people believe that the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport or the Prime Minister currently has the ability to resolve the issue if the strike is prolonged or due to the absence of substitutes."

Rep. Yoo Sang-beom of the same party said, “Another strike is expected,” and asked, “The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport was stranded while trying to increase the required maintenance operation rate in preparation for the strike. Is there an alternative to KORAIL’s general strike?”

In response to this, KORAIL CEO Kim Tae-seung said, "We will do our best to minimize inconvenience to the public," and added, "We will deploy replacement workers to ensure that at least 75% of the operation promises are kept."