17 November, 2016Struggling against the government’s attacks on labour rights, unions in South Korean are holding a general strike for workers’ rights on 30 November. IndustriALL is calling for global days of action to support the unions’ fight.
Korean unions are struggling against a government crackdown on labour rights. The administration of South Korean President Park oversaw police raids of trade unions’ offices and the arrest of hundreds of peaceful trade unionists.
Park has attempted to make changes to Korean labour law that include permitting firing without due process, cutting wages for senior employees and allowing more outsourcing.
The Park government has been implicated in a scandal in which major Korean corporations paid bribes to foundations controlled by an ally of Park in exchange for support for anti-labour policies and other favors.
As part of an ongoing fight back that recently included one million Koreans marching through Seoul, Korean unions have called a general strike for 30 November.
Join in the global days of action to support the Korean unions between now and 30 November by:
- Sending a protest letter. Put it on your union’s letterhead, insert your union’s name in the first sentence, add a signature and send it to the email addresses listed at the top of the letter.
- Taking selfies holding up the solidarity sign (links to the right) and post them online with hashtag #KoreaGeneralStrike and send them to [email protected] to share.
- Holding an action at a Korean embassy or consulate or at a location of one of the anti-labour, corrupt Korean corporations such as Hyundai, LG, Posco or Samsung. You could deliver a protest letter to the embassy, consulate or management. Make sure to send pics or video of the action to [email protected] to share.
IndustriALL Global Union general secretary Valter Sanches, who recently visited Korea on a solidarity mission, says:
I urge you to support this general strike by participating in the global days of action and show the Korean government the strength of global solidarity.