ITUC: South Korea Still Rated Category 5
"Fundamental Labor Rights Not Guaranteed"
Labor Rights in South Korea Among the Lowest Globally
An international labor organization has announced that the level of labor rights protection in South Korea is among the lowest in the world.
On June 2 (local time), the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), representing 161 million workers in 167 countries worldwide, released its 2025 'Global Rights Index' report. According to the report, South Korea remained in the fifth category, the same as last year. The fifth category indicates a "country where fundamental labor rights are not guaranteed."
The ITUC, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, evaluates the level of labor rights protection in countries around the world each year and classifies them into the following categories: Category 1 (sporadic violations), Category 2 (repeated violations), Category 3 (regular violations), Category 4 (systematic violations), Category 5 (no guarantee), and Category 5+ (no guarantee due to breakdown of the legal system).
Category 5, where South Korea is classified, is the lowest except for Category 5+, which is reserved for countries where the government is effectively non-functional due to civil war or similar situations. Other countries in Category 5 alongside South Korea include China, Egypt, Bangladesh, India, Iran, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Guatemala, and Malaysia. The ITUC pointed out that in countries such as South Korea, Bahrain, Canada, Guatemala, the Netherlands, and Peru, employers have exploited weak laws and inadequate oversight to avoid collective bargaining. They have done so through delaying tactics, refusal to negotiate, and agreements with employer-friendly unions or organizations lacking representation.
Among the 151 countries surveyed, only seven?Germany, Sweden, Austria, Denmark, Iceland, Ireland, and Norway?were classified as Category 1. The United States was classified as Category 4, Japan as Category 2, and North Korea was excluded from the survey.
The ITUC commented that this year's labor rights index declined in three out of five global regions, and that both Europe and the Americas recorded their worst results since the index began in 2014. The organization stated, "This shows that the crisis facing workers and unions is both severe and worsening."
The ITUC explained that, among the countries surveyed, 72% did not adequately guarantee workers' access to justice, 45% violated freedom of the press and assembly, and 87% violated the right to strike, indicating that labor rights protection has deteriorated compared to 2024. The organization also noted, "Workers' rights and democracy are frequently under attack by far-right politicians and their unelected billionaire backers."
The ITUC specifically mentioned U.S. President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, stating, "The Trump administration destroyed the collective labor rights of American workers and brought anti-union billionaires to the center of policy-making."
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