[Exclusive] Two Post Office Delivery Union Members Participating in Rally Confirmed with COVID-19

The Post Office Courier Union has been staging a sit-in protest in the lobby on the first floor of Yeouido Post Tower since the 14th. Photo by KBS News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] It has been confirmed that some participants in the recently concluded courier union strike rallies were infected with COVID-19, raising concerns about another cluster infection outbreak originating from the rallies.

According to authorities on the 18th, two union members belonging to the National Courier Union's Post Office Headquarters who participated in the recent strike-related rallies were confirmed to be infected with COVID-19. These two individuals attended a rally held by the National Courier Union on the 15th at Yeouido Park in Seoul, which was attended by about 4,000 people, urging measures to prevent death from overwork. Following the request of the Korea Post Logistics Support Team, they were tested at a local public health center screening clinic before starting work and were confirmed positive. The number of courier union members working at the Korea Post Logistics Support Team is about 2,500 (out of a total of about 3,800), and they are classified as special employment workers.

With the confirmation of COVID-19 infections among some post office courier union members who participated in the strike-related rallies, the relevant authorities are reportedly monitoring for additional infections and have initiated emergency measures. In particular, the post office courier union members had staged a prolonged sit-in protest in the lobby on the first floor of the Yeouido Post Tower starting from the morning of the 14th, with about 120 participants.

Meanwhile, the courier union members, who had been on strike since the 9th demanding exclusion from sorting work through additional manpower deployment and an increase in fees, returned to work the next day after a tentative agreement between labor, management, and government was reached on the 16th. The post office courier union members were also scheduled to resume work from that day.