Truckers strike threatening the supply of soju and cement

Economy

Published: 07 Jun. 2022, 17:58 Updated: 07 Jun. 2022, 18:27

Truckers strike threatening the supply of soju and cement

Members of the Cargo Truckers Solidarity strike at the Uiwang Inland Container Depot on Tuesday. [YONHAP]

Unionized truck drivers went on strike Tuesday demanding higher wages and an extension of support measures, with disruptions possible in the transportation of cement and soju as a result.

Cargo Truckers Solidarity, the union leading the strike, said about 25,000 truck drivers will participate. The workers will not transport cargo and will block gates at distribution centers.

The participants are only about six percent of the 420,000 truck drivers in Korea, but could create a problem for construction as many cement truckers are participating. Of the 2,700 bulk cement trailer trucks in Korea, around half are union members.

The union is under the Korean Public Service and Transport Workers' Union and belongs to the more radical Korean Confederation of Trade Unions.

Despite numbers stated by the union, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said about 8,200 truckers participated in the strike on Tuesday.

Unionized truck drivers are requesting the transport ministry extend the so-called freight charge system, implemented in 2020 but slated to end in December 2022. The system requires minimum payments to truck drivers every month. The ministry introduced the support measure saying the extra pay will prevent truckers from overloading themselves with too many orders, risking traffic accidents by driving too fast or overloading their trucks.

Truckers are demanding the government extend the program because they need the extra pay due to surging fuel costs. They are also demanding an increase in freight rates. The strike will continue until their requests are met.

President Yoon Suk-yeol said the strike will be dealt according to the law.

"Whether it's the unjust labor actions of employers or illegal actions of laborers, I've made it clear since the election campaign that they will be handled in accordance with the law," said Yoon to reporters on Tuesday, when arriving at the presidential office and asked about the strike.

Under Korea law, strikes have to be led by a union, must deal with labor issues, but be authorized by vote and must not involve violence.

The National Police Agency said it will arrest any union members who engage in illegal activities or disrupt non-striking truckers.

Despite stern measures, supply disruptions could be felt.

Around a 1,000 unionized workers gathered in front of the Uiwang Inland Container Depot in Gyeonggi on Tuesday morning, announcing the strike, sitting in the road and parking trucks to block gates of the distribution center. This halted transport from the center. Cement is transported to the greater Seoul area from the center and is used by companies such as SsangYong C&E, Hanil Cement and Sungshin Cement.

When the union went on strike November last year, also refusing to transport cargo, the Korea Cement Association said the volume of cement transported that month fell 80 percent compared to the previous month.

Around 130 unionized workers under the Cargo Truckers Solidarity have been on strike early since June 2 requesting similar measures and refusing to deliver cargo. The 130 are contracted by Suyang Logistics to transport soju from HiteJinro plants in Icheon, Gyeonggi and Chungju, North Chungcheong. They two sites make 70 percent of the company's output.

With less soju being transported from factories to retailers, 7-Eleven and Ministop limited orders to one box of HiteJinro soju per branch per day starting June 4. Each box has 20 bottles. Emart24 allows each branch to order three boxes per day.

Korea's 12 ports, including the Port of Busan and the Incheon Port, had a port equipment rate of 68.1 percent as of Tuesday. The rate shows how much containerized cargo is at the ports compared to the total capacity. A figure above 80 percent indicates the port needs more room.

Incheon Port Authority designated a 401,190-square-meter (4.3-million-square-feet) port hinterland to temporarily store containers that might have to stay at the Incheon port for a long time. The area can store 33,667 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) of containers. The Busan port is temporarily using nearby lots, giving it extra space to store 22,432 TEU.

Five trucks owned by the Ministry of National Defense have been dispatched to deliver cargo from major ports, such as the Busan and Incheon ports, in an effort to lessen the effects of the strike.

BY LEE TAE-HEE [lee.taehee2@joongang.co.kr]