Parties, government wrangle over unions, rallies

Politics

Published: 24 May. 2023, 19:14 Updated: 24 May. 2023, 19:16

Parties, government wrangle over unions, rallies

Rep. Lim Lee-ja of the People Power Party, left, protests the referral of a contentious pro-labor bill against Democratic Party Rep. Jeon Hae-cheol, head of the parliamentary Environment and Labor Committee, on Wednesday at the National Assembly in western Seoul. [YONHAP]

The government and People Power Party (PPP) agreed Wednesday to consider the restriction of downtown rallies by organizations with criminal records, sparking outrage from labor unions.

Later the same day, the Democratic Party (DP)-controlled parliamentary Environment and Labor Committee referred a contentious pro-labor bill to a plenary session of the National Assembly for a vote.

Political tensions between the DP and President Yoon Suk Yeol’s PPP yet again boiled over, a week after members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) held a massive rally in various parts of the capital to demand the administration halt its “oppression” against labor groups.

The protest, which was authorized by the police to end at 5 p.m., continued throughout the night and into the morning on May 16 and 17, involving some 25,000 protestors staging a sit-in in the downtown area.

Photos of union members paralyzing traffic, drinking on the pavement and leaving behind loads of trash circulated online, prompting criticism.

In a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office Tuesday, Yoon lambasted the KCTU and blamed its members for disrupting public order, accusing the former Moon Jae-in administration of coddling them.

Yoon stressed his government wouldn’t ignore nor tolerate any illegal activity.

Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions stage a sit-in near Cheonggye Plaza in downtown Seoul on the morning of May 17 as people walk by. [YONHAP]

A single day after Yoon slammed the KCTU, the government and PPP gathered for a meeting to discuss ways to “establish public order” and agreed that restrictions on downtown rallies could be imposed on previous rule-breakers.

Both sides also agreed to discuss restricting rush-hour rallies in the downtown area.

Rep. Yun Jae-ok, floor leader of the PPP, however, stressed to reporters after the Wednesday meeting that it doesn’t mean any labor union with a history of illegality would be restricted from holding rallies.

In order for a rally to be possibly disallowed, it would have to be “evident” that it would “directly threaten” public order and other individuals’ basic rights, he said.

When a reporter asked the PPP floor leader to specify, he replied that authorities would make a “comprehensive decision” based on the rally’s time, location, number of participants, purpose and the organizer’s criminal record.

Later on Wednesday, the DP and minor left-wing Justice Party passed a motion to present a bill to the National Assembly aimed at revising the Trade Union and Labor Regulations Adjustment Act.

The motion was approved 10 to 0. All six members of the PPP walked out of the meeting in protest.

The bill, better known as the “yellow envelope bill,” guarantees the bargaining rights of subcontractors and limits litigation for damages against unionized workers, making it difficult for companies to take legal action against workers for participating in illegal strikes.

Even if the bill is approved during the National Assembly plenary session, it still faces a potential veto by President Yoon. Vetoed bills return to the National Assembly, where a two-thirds vote is required to override the veto.

BY LEE SUNG-EUN [lee.sungeun@joongang.co.kr]