The labor union for city buses in Seoul, South Korea, declared that negotiations with management had broken down on the 28th and launched a strike at 4:00 a.m. that same day, as previously announced. This is the first strike in 12 years. It is feared that the strike will impact morning commutes to work and school.

Workers from 65 companies are members of the Seoul City Bus Labor Union under the Federation of Korean Automobile & Transport Workers' Unions, and it is reported that 61 companies are subject to the collective bargaining that could participate in this strike. A total of 7,210 buses, representing 97.6% of all city buses, have suspended operations.

In negotiations with the Seoul Bus Transportation Association, the union has argued that a 12.7% hourly wage increase is necessary to prevent staff turnover, which has been accelerating. Management pointed out that the union is demanding an excessive wage increase compared to the inflation rate over the last five years.

Labor and management entered mediation meetings on the afternoon of the 27th. The Seoul Regional Labor Relations Commission proposed a 6.1% increase, and while both sides continued discussions past the midnight deadline on the 28th, they were unable to bridge the gap.

The union declared the negotiations a failure and launched the strike. A vote on whether to strike was held on the 26th, the day before the mediation meeting, and was passed with 88.5% approval from registered union members.

The last strike by the Seoul City Bus Union was in 2012. At that time, a 20-minute partial strike was carried out.

However, it appears that working-level staff from both sides will continue behind-the-scenes discussions, and attention is focused on whether an early settlement can be reached.

Meanwhile, the Seoul Metropolitan Government is implementing emergency transportation measures to minimize the impact of the strike on citizens. As an alternative means of transport, subway service will be increased by 202 trains per day, and the last train times will be extended until 2:00 a.m. the following day (arrival time at the final station). Free shuttle buses will also operate in the city's 25 districts to allow for commuting to work and school.

Source: ©yonhapnews

These are English translations of articles from our GTTOUR Japanese website.