Delivery Workers' Union Decides on Total Strike Over 'Apartment Vehicle Entry Conflict'... Timing Undecided

On the 7th, participants of the National Courier Workers' Union held up hand placards at a press conference announcing the results of the strike vote by the Courier Union regarding the 'delivery conflict' at the Service Federation in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. The Courier Union stated on the 7th, "The total strike vote among union members passed with 77.0% approval," and announced that the timing of the strike will be delegated to the chairman and that the strike will proceed as a partial strike. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] The National Courier Workers' Union (Courier Union), which has been in conflict with an apartment complex and courier companies in Godeok-dong, Seoul, over vehicle access control issues, has decided to launch a general strike. However, the timing of the strike has not been set and will be decided by the union chairman "if unavoidable."

On the 7th, the Courier Union held a press conference at the Service Federation office under the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, stating, "Out of 5,835 eligible voters, 5,298 (90.8%) voted, with 4,078 in favor, 1,151 against, and 69 invalid votes, passing the strike vote among all union members." They added, "All procedures to initiate the general strike have been completed, and about 2,000 union members who have completed the labor dispute procedures at the Labor Relations Commission will participate in this strike."

Jin Kyung-ho, chairman of the Courier Union, said, "We will focus our struggle on urging courier companies to quickly present delivery measures and resolve the issue," adding, "Courier companies must promptly designate apartments that restrict ground-level vehicle access as no-delivery zones and prepare countermeasures such as imposing additional fees."

The Courier Union's strike originated from a 'courier conflict' at a large apartment complex in Godeok-dong, Gangdong-gu, Seoul. Since April 1, the apartment complex has banned vehicle traffic on ground roads within the complex, requiring all vehicles to use the underground parking lot. However, courier trucks (box trucks) cannot enter because their height (2.5?2.7m) exceeds the underground parking entrance height limit (2.3m). In response, the Courier Union temporarily stopped individual household deliveries and piled up delivery items in front of the apartment complex, escalating the conflict. The union has since condemned courier companies for forcing the use of low-height trucks (low-floor vehicles) for deliveries, arguing that using such vehicles adversely affects the safety and health of courier workers. The Courier Union has filed a complaint against the CEO of CJ Logistics for violating the Industrial Safety and Health Act.

Although the strike was initially reported to begin on the 11th, the Courier Union announced that it will not specify the date of the general strike. The union stated, "To minimize inconvenience to the public, the chairman will decide the timing if a situation arises where the strike is truly unavoidable," adding, "We plan to minimize the scale and number of participants in the strike and refuse deliveries mainly of fresh food, which accounts for about 10% of total courier volume."

This is the third time the Courier Union has declared a strike since the COVID-19 pandemic last year. In September last year, courier workers declared a refusal to perform sorting tasks but withdrew the strike after agreeing in a social dialogue involving the government and courier companies to specify that sorting responsibility lies with courier companies and to deploy sorting personnel. In January, when sorting personnel were not smoothly deployed on site, courier workers declared a general strike, claiming they were forced back into sorting tasks. The strike was suspended after the labor and management sides prepared a more detailed agreement on deploying sorting personnel than the previous one. Some critics argue that the union excessively uses the general strike, which could cause public inconvenience, as a "negotiation card."