Non-regular workers belonging to in-house subcontractors of Korea GM won the final victory in a lawsuit filed against Korea GM, requesting recognition of the worker dispatch relationship.
On the morning of the 25th, in front of the Supreme Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, members of the Metal Workers' Union Korean GM Irregular Workers' Association, the parties involved, performed an act of tearing up dismissal notices during a press conference announcing their stance on the Supreme Court ruling regarding illegal dispatch of irregular workers at Korean GM. 2024.7.25jieunlee@yna.co.kr
[Image source=Yonhap News]
On the 25th, the Supreme Court's 3rd Division (Presiding Justice Eom Sang-pil) upheld the lower court's ruling in favor of the plaintiffs in five cases, including a lawsuit for confirmation of worker status filed by a total of 128 non-regular workers from the 1st and 2nd in-house subcontractors at Korea GM's Changwon, Bupyeong, and Gunsan plants against the primary contractor. The court held that since the plaintiffs were in a dispatch relationship receiving substantial orders and commands from Korea GM, Korea GM should be regarded as the actual employer.
The court found no issue with the lower court's judgment that "not only the plaintiffs engaged in direct production processes but also those involved in indirect production processes such as logistics were employed by in-house subcontractors and dispatched to the defendant (Korea GM) workplaces, where they were directly supervised and managed, constituting a worker dispatch relationship."
However, the Supreme Court ruled that some workers belonging to the 2nd-tier subcontractors among the plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit were not recognized as having a worker dispatch relationship and were thus excluded from direct employment.
Previously, workers belonging to Korea GM's in-house subcontractors filed a complaint with the Ministry of Employment and Labor in 2005 regarding illegal dispatch, which the ministry acknowledged. Subsequently, the ministry filed charges against the Korea GM president and subcontractor representatives for violating the Dispatch Act, and in February 2013, fines were finalized by the Supreme Court against former Korea GM president Nick Reilly and others.
However, even after the Supreme Court ruling, cases occurred where Korea GM did not convert non-regular workers to regular employees or where workers suffered disadvantages. In response, workers filed lawsuits to confirm their worker status against the primary contractor starting in 2015.
Following favorable rulings for the non-regular workers in both the first and second trials, the Supreme Court finalized the decision on this day.
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