hankyoreh

It has been 24 days today since the Hyundai Motor irregular workers’ union began its sit-down strike at the No. 1 Factory in Ulsan. It is the rare example of a long-lasting factory occupation, but the company has neglected efforts to resolve the situation. Little better has been the response from the Hyundai Motor permanent workers’ union. As such, it is difficult to see any signs of a smooth resolution. The situation has led to concerns that a protracted sit-in strike could lead to aftereffects that are difficult to erase for labor and management alike.
The key to resolving the situation naturally lies in the hands of the company, but every bit as important as this is the stance of the permanent workers’ union leadership. The situation could find a quicker resolution if that union were to put its support behind the regularization of temporary positions. Often, permanent workers’ unions remark on the need to show a spirit of solidarity and help improve conditions for temporary workers. But in the current case of the Hyundai Motor union, it would be enough to show something less like solidarity and more like a simple spirit of cooperation. The areas at issue are not so complex as to require some great commitment from permanent workers.
The irregular workers’ union is asking for respect for the spirit of the law and court rulings. In July, the Supreme Court ruled that irregular workers who worked for more than two years as in-house subcontractors were regarded as being employed as permanent workers according to the prescriptions of the former Act on the Protection, etc., of Dispatch Workers. The Seoul High Court made a similar ruling last month. This is the basis for the argument among long-term temporary workers that they are essentially permanent employees of Hyundai Motor. The strike is a last resort to pressure the company into acknowledging this.
From the worker’s standpoint, the union’s position stands to reason. And the permanent workers’ union cannot refute this. This is not a situation that requires any lofty slogans about “regular-irregular worker solidarity.” It would be even more unusual for the company to comply if the permanent workers’ union is ignoring workers’ call to do things according to the law. The permanent workers’ union needs to take active steps so that discussions premised upon the regularization of temporary positions take place as soon as possible. It is also in the permanent workers’ interest to help ensure that the spirit of laws and court rulings is carried through.
The company, for its part, must not ignore the temporary workers’ demands. There is no telling how things will unfold if it insists on dragging things out and waiting for the irregular workers’ union to tire out. The workers, who have held out in an unheated factory for more than twenty days now, do not appear ready to give up easily. The only way to resolve this situation would be through discussions toward regularizing their positions.
　　
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