Supreme Court Rules "Asiana Subcontractor's 'COVID-19 Dismissal' Unfair"... Dismisses Lawsuit to Cancel Central Labor Relations Commission Decision

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin, Legal Affairs Specialist] The Supreme Court has ruled that the Central Labor Commission's judgment that Asiana KO, a subcontractor of Asiana Airlines, unfairly dismissed employees citing business difficulties due to COVID-19 is valid.

According to the legal community on the 3rd, the Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Lee Dong-won) dismissed Asiana KO's appeal to cancel the reconsideration ruling for unfair dismissal relief filed against the Central Labor Commission, and upheld the lower court's ruling in favor of the Central Labor Commission by summary dismissal yesterday.

Summary dismissal is a system under the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Appeal Procedure, where the Supreme Court dismisses an appeal without substantive review if there is no significant legal violation or other grounds for appeal as prescribed by law in non-criminal cases.

Supreme Court in Seocho-dong, Seoul. Photo by Asia Economy DB

Asiana KO, responsible for baggage handling and in-flight cleaning for Asiana Airlines, demanded indefinite unpaid leave from employees in May 2020, citing business difficulties amid the spread of COVID-19, and dismissed eight workers who refused.

The local labor commission and the Central Labor Commission, which received relief applications from the dismissed workers, consecutively ruled the dismissals unfair. In response, Asiana KO filed a lawsuit against the Central Labor Commission in January 2021.

Earlier, the first and second trials ruled that the Central Labor Commission's judgment that Asiana KO's dismissal was unfair was valid, stating that "the employer did not make every effort to avoid dismissal."