KCTU Declares Termination of 'Gwangju-type Job' Agreement... "Only Labor Sacrifice Is Forced"

Asia Economy DB=Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bo-kyung] The Korean Federation of Trade Unions (KFTU) officially declares the termination of the Gwangju-type job agreement. The first model of the 'win-win regional job' created through mutual cooperation among local economic actors such as labor, management, civilians, and local governments is facing difficulties from the start.

On the 1st, the KFTU stated in a press release, "The KFTU Gwangju Regional Headquarters is scheduled to declare the termination of the Gwangju-type job agreement," adding, "The declaration of termination means that the hope to form an economic community by linking youth jobs and local jobs has collapsed."

They continued, "Despite endless patience and efforts for dialogue, we ultimately could not overcome the walls of capital greed and incompetent administration," and said, "The Gwangju-type job is no longer a 'win-win' job model."

The KFTU holds the position that the original purpose of the Gwangju-type job, which is labor-management coexistence, has been damaged during the project implementation process. The labor demands, such as the labor director system, were not accepted, and only the interests of the major shareholder, Hyundai Motor Company, were reflected. A red light has also been turned on for the first project under the agreement, the Gwangju Global Motors automobile factory project.

They criticized, "The processes that have taken place since the Gwangju-type job agreement ceremony in January last year were nothing more than public opinion manipulation that forced labor exclusion and sacrifice."

They added, "Fair wages, appropriate working hours, win-win plans between primary and subcontractors, and responsible labor-management management are the basic principles of the win-win job model," and said, "The KFTU proposed to resolve these issues through the 'Social Integration Job Council,' but the final response was 'the labor sector's devoted decision.'"

Meanwhile, they said, "The KFTU and the Gwangju Regional Headquarters painfully accept the failure of the Gwangju-type job," and "We hope that today's situation will serve as a painful awakening for companies, central and local governments in the future development of the regional economy and the creation of youth jobs."

The win-win regional job model is a project where local economic actors such as labor, management, civilians, and local governments in each region sign a win-win agreement to create new jobs, and local governments and the government provide various incentives such as subsidies and tax benefits. Starting with the Gwangju-type job, the 7th win-win regional job agreement was signed earlier this year in Busan.