Supreme Court: "Dispatching Old Taxis After Union Activities Constitutes Discriminatory Treatment"

The Supreme Court has ruled that if a company disadvantages an employee by assigning an older taxi because of union activities, it constitutes an unfair labor practice.

The Supreme Court's First Division (Presiding Justice Oh Kyung-mi) announced on the 10th that it upheld the lower court's ruling that sentenced taxi company CEO A, who was indicted for violating the Labor Union Act, to a fine of 3 million won.

A, who operates a taxi company in Cheonan, notified taxi driver B of the termination of his employment contract because B joined the Public Transport Union and engaged in union activities.

Although the termination of the employment contract was withdrawn after six days, when B returned to work, he was disadvantaged by not being assigned fixed dispatches and instead being assigned older taxis.

It was also investigated that A tried to persuade B to give up union membership and interfered with the organization or operation of the union.

The first trial court judged, "The newly assigned vehicle was older than the previous one and had a history of accidents," and ruled that "it is clear that the assignment of this vehicle was a disadvantageous treatment compared to before," sentencing A to a fine of 3 million won.

The second trial court also maintained the first trial's judgment, stating, "The newly assigned vehicle was not only one year older than the previously operated vehicle but also showed significant differences in major accident history and mileage, which can be recognized as disadvantageous treatment compared to before."

The Supreme Court also agreed that the lower courts' judgments were correct.