[Q&A] Seoul Metro "Temporarily Suspended Ahead of Seollal... Will Continue Discussions"

Temporary Suspension of 12-Minute Adjustment Time Change

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] Seoul Metro, operated by Seoul Transportation Corporation, has decided to temporarily suspend changes to subway crew driving hours.

At a press conference on the 20th, the corporation stated, "There should be no inconvenience to citizens ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday," and announced, "We have decided to temporarily suspend the adjustment of driving hours, which was changed by 12 minutes to 4.7 hours."

Below is a Q&A with Choi Jeong-gyun, Acting President of Seoul Transportation Corporation.

- The company has maintained a stance of not yielding to the strike, which is considered illegal, but how do you respond to criticisms that you have ultimately succumbed to union pressure?

▲ Launching a strike before the holiday would be unreasonable. Since we transport an average of 7.3 million people daily, we judged that it should not be blocked. We declared a temporary suspension to minimize inconvenience.

- There may be criticism that you are being led by labor and management. How do you plan to approach future labor negotiations?

▲ After the integrated four-year period, when personnel exchange regulations are unified, some issues are expected to be resolved. We will cooperate and engage in good dialogue.

- Please explain what problems may arise if the average driving time increases by 12 minutes.

▲ (Jeong Il-bong, Head of Crew Division) Most work schedules have not increased compared to before, but for some long-distance routes, there are problems operating to the terminus and returning. We are considering methods such as establishing waiting rooms in long-distance sections to stop continuous long-distance driving.

- The labor union says they are refusing to follow unfair work orders, but what is the basis for the company defining this as an illegal strike?

▲ It was calculated based on working hours according to employment regulations, but since only the crew sector is not performing their duties, it had to be regarded as an illegal strike.