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18 April, 2000The Trade Union Advisory Committee urges the OECD to maintain their check on the labour rights situation in the Republic of Korea.
GLOBAL/KOREA REP: According to the Trade Union Advisory Committee to the OECD, a delegation from TUAC met on April 12 with the OECD's Employment, Labour and Social Affairs Committee, pressing the OECD not to suspend its special monitoring of Korea's labour rights.
Although there has been some progress on labour questions in Korea, with the legalisation of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and recognition of the teachers' unions, the government still has a long way to go to come into line with the ILO standards on freedom of association. The great majority of workers in the public sector are still being denied their right to trade union representation, and trade unionists continue to be harassed and arrested in the course of their trade union activities (see IMF news item dated April 12 concerning arrest warrants for 35 Korean trade unionists).
TUAC says as a result of their meeting with the OECD Employment, Labour and Social Affairs Committee that it appears the OECD will maintain the process of monitoring labour rights in South Korea and review the situation again in 2001. They have called on the Korean government to "set a clear timetable for labour law reform in Korea so that by the end of 2001 legislation is in place to grant all public sector workers trade union rights and to honour its remaining commitments to observe ILO standards of Freedom of Association."
When in 1996 Korea was finally admitted to membership in the OECD, it had to put in writing a commitment to bringing its labour legislation in line with internationally-accepted standards.
Additional information on the TUAC submission to the OECD can be found on their website at www.tuac.org
Further information on the trade union situation in Korea can be found by seaching "Korea" on the IMF website at www.imfmetal.org
Although there has been some progress on labour questions in Korea, with the legalisation of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and recognition of the teachers' unions, the government still has a long way to go to come into line with the ILO standards on freedom of association. The great majority of workers in the public sector are still being denied their right to trade union representation, and trade unionists continue to be harassed and arrested in the course of their trade union activities (see IMF news item dated April 12 concerning arrest warrants for 35 Korean trade unionists).
TUAC says as a result of their meeting with the OECD Employment, Labour and Social Affairs Committee that it appears the OECD will maintain the process of monitoring labour rights in South Korea and review the situation again in 2001. They have called on the Korean government to "set a clear timetable for labour law reform in Korea so that by the end of 2001 legislation is in place to grant all public sector workers trade union rights and to honour its remaining commitments to observe ILO standards of Freedom of Association."
When in 1996 Korea was finally admitted to membership in the OECD, it had to put in writing a commitment to bringing its labour legislation in line with internationally-accepted standards.
Additional information on the TUAC submission to the OECD can be found on their website at www.tuac.org
Further information on the trade union situation in Korea can be found by seaching "Korea" on the IMF website at www.imfmetal.org