Concerns Over 'Beer Crisis' as Cargo Solidarity Protests at HiteJinro Gangwon Plant...

Cargo Solidarity Union Blocks Factory Access Road and Holds Sit-in
Concerns Over Distribution Disruption Due to Delayed Shipments and Declining Beer Shipment Rates
Some Union Members Detained by Police for Obstruction of Business

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Eunmo Koo] The sit-in protest by the Cargo Solidarity, a branch of the Korean Public Service and Transport Workers' Union under the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), at the HiteJinro Gangwon Plant has continued since the 2nd, causing delays in the shipment of beer products. As the shipment delays persist during the peak beer season in summer, concerns about a beer shortage crisis are emerging.

According to industry sources on the 6th, the shipment rate of beer products produced at the HiteJinro Gangwon Plant dropped to about 29% of the usual level on the first day of the Cargo Solidarity protest on the 2nd, and further declined to the 0% range on the 3rd. Although some shipments resumed from the afternoon of the 4th after police intervention, the recovery of shipment rates remains slow.

The HiteJinro Gangwon Plant mainly produces beer products such as Terra and has shipped the largest volume among HiteJinro beer plants, averaging 110,000 to 120,000 boxes per day. If the shipment suspension continues during the summer peak season, disruptions in beer distribution and increased consumer harm are expected. Currently, since each nationwide center holds inventory, a beer shortage has not yet occurred, but if the situation does not improve, some regions may face inventory shortages starting next week.

About 200 union members of the Cargo Solidarity, who have been demanding increased transportation fees, have been staging a sit-in protest since the afternoon of the 2nd, using about 20 trucks to block the access roads to the HiteJinro Gangwon Plant. These union members are reportedly planning to continue the indefinite sit-in until their demands for fare increases are met.

In response, HiteJinro stated that it will hold those responsible for the obstruction of business accountable. A HiteJinro representative said, "More than 100 other truck owners, who have nothing to do with us, have been suffering for over four months since March due to the Cargo Solidarity," and criticized, "It is not right to come to the unrelated Gangwon beer plant and disrupt operations." They also rebutted, "The dismissed drivers had their contracts terminated by Suyang Logistics, and since they are not HiteJinro employees, we cannot directly dismiss them."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

As the intensity of the sit-in increased, some Cargo Solidarity union members were detained by the police. According to the police, the Gangwon Provincial Police Agency arrested 12 Cargo Solidarity union members on charges of obstructing business for protesting at the HiteJinro Gangwon Plant in Hongcheon County, Gangwon Province, the previous day. The police issued a dispersal order to the union members who blocked the only access road to the HiteJinro Gangwon Plant, the Hite Bridge, but they refused and were detained. Earlier, on the 4th, two union members who were caught in the act of obstructing business by blocking logistics vehicle movement on the bridge were investigated and released that night.

Meanwhile, the possibility of a strike by the OB Beer plant union still remains. The unions at OB Beer's Gwangju and Icheon plants have been negotiating wages with management and will hold a vote next week on whether to accept the management's final offer. Initially, when wage negotiations with management stalled, the two plant unions decided to strike on the 1st but postponed the plan to continue renegotiations. If a strike by the OB Beer union occurs following HiteJinro's, disruptions in the supply of beer products during the summer peak season, when beer consumption increases, seem inevitable.