[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Jucheol In] STX Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering union members have launched a full-scale strike, urging the suspension of unpaid rotational leave that has continued for three years.
Due to sluggish orders, STX Shipbuilding has been implementing unpaid rotational leave since June 2018, with about 500 production workers alternating in groups of approximately 250. As union members have faced severe financial hardship entering the third year of unpaid rotational leave, they have called for its suspension and initiated a full strike.
In response, the management appealed to the labor union to stop the strike and return to work.
On the 19th, STX Shipbuilding requested, "For the normalization of the company, production workers scheduled to work from this month should return to the company and fulfill their roles."
The management analyzed, "Due to the impact of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), order activities have almost ceased, and if this continues, a full shutdown of operations is inevitable."
They further explained, "The losses incurred during the strike and work stoppage period have intensified the pressure to reduce fixed costs."
STX Shipbuilding stated, "To overcome the upcoming production volume cliff in a few months, labor and management must unite to secure orders through new contracts."
Following the union strike that began on the 1st, which disrupted shipbuilding operations, STX Shipbuilding halted operations at the Jinhae shipyard for a month starting from the 17th.
An STX Shipbuilding official said, "Considering the volume of orders the company holds and the speed of shipbuilding, it is impossible to suspend unpaid rotational leave."
Concerns are also rising about mass layoffs at Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering and Samsung Heavy Industries, as their offshore plant projects are expected to be completed within this year.
Daewoo Shipbuilding's TCO project, ordered in 2014, is scheduled for the final module delivery in July this year. Samsung Heavy Industries is also expected to complete all processes for two offshore plant projects currently under construction by the first half of next year. Because of this, workers employed in the offshore plant projects at both companies face the risk of losing their jobs starting from the second half of this year.
A source from the shipbuilding industry said, "The order drought continues due to COVID-19," adding, "The LNG ship orders from Qatar may not be as profitable as expected."
On the 17th, Byeon Gwang-yong, Mayor of Geoje City, met with Kim Yong-gi, Vice Chairman of the Job Committee, and requested, "Starting from the second half of this year, a significant job exodus centered on subcontractors is anticipated due to the lack of work at the two major shipyards, and we ask the government to actively cooperate in seeking employment retention measures and creating alternatives that can turn this crisis into an opportunity."
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