Union sues KEB president for punishing its members

Finance

Published: 15 Sep. 2014, 20:49

Union sues KEB president for punishing its members

The labor union of Korea Exchange Bank has sued the company’s president, Kim Han-jo, and eight other executives with the Seoul Regional Labor Office, accusing them of punishing 898 union members for unfair reasons.

The union said in the lawsuit that even though it held a legal strike, which should be protected by labor laws, management deliberately interrupted the demonstration and mistreated labor members for taking part in the protest.

Due to threats and obstacles set by management, the union’s general meeting slated for Sept. 3 couldn’t be held, it said.

The company said members attending the meeting would be punished, which is an illegal action, the union said. The KEB trade union held a strike to oppose the early merger of KEB and Hana Bank, which was pushed by top management of both institutions.

“KEB President Kim Han-jo intends to take over the chairman position of a merged KEB-Hana, seeking his personal interest,” the union said at a press conference yesterday.

“There will be no negotiations on the merger if the management doesn’t withdraw its decision to punish about 900 employees.”