By Nam Hyun-woo
A court ordered subcontracted unionized workers of Hyundai Motor Group Thursday to pay 9 billion won in compensation for losses incurred to the company due to their strike in 2010.
The amount sought in the litigation settlement is the largest that a court has ever imposed on a union for strike-related losses.
In a compensation suit filed by the carmaker, the Ulsan District Court sided with the company and ruled that the 22 leaders and the members of the labor union are "liable to compensate losses caused by their violent occupying of factories."
Among the 27 workers that the company filed the suit against, the court dismissed claims on five unionists citing lack of evidence.
This latest ruling came after a series of similar ones in recent months. On Nov. 28, the court ordered the unionists to pay a maximum 500 million won as litigation settlement. In October, it also ruled in favor of the company and ordered 11 unionized workers to pay 2 billion won. With Thursday's ruling, the amount the unionized workers have to pay to the company amounts to a total of 12 billion won.
The labor union said it rejects the ruling and plans to immediately appeal to a high court.
"The series of rulings in favor of Hyundai Motor Group shows that the court is nothing more than a spokesman for the company which committed unlawful agency works," an official at the union said.
Some 200 subcontracted unionists occupied a manufacturing line in Ulsan for 25 days from Nov. 15, 2010, demanding permanent employment and an official apology from the company for "suppressing the unionists." The sit-in ended after the company and the labor union entered into negotiations.
The company claims that it could not manufacture some 27,000 vehicles due to the unionists' action and it suffered severe losses amounting to 251.7 billion won.
It filed a total of seven suits claiming compensations for losses caused by the sit-in and they have so far received five rulings in their favor.
The automaker has filed total 16 compensation suits against unionized workers, worth 22.3 billion won, against 684 members of the union during the past three years.
"The ruling shows the court's will to hold the unionists responsible for illegal actions of sit-ins, which exceeded acceptable level," an official of the company said.
A court ordered subcontracted unionized workers of Hyundai Motor Group Thursday to pay 9 billion won in compensation for losses incurred to the company due to their strike in 2010.
The amount sought in the litigation settlement is the largest that a court has ever imposed on a union for strike-related losses.
In a compensation suit filed by the carmaker, the Ulsan District Court sided with the company and ruled that the 22 leaders and the members of the labor union are "liable to compensate losses caused by their violent occupying of factories."
Among the 27 workers that the company filed the suit against, the court dismissed claims on five unionists citing lack of evidence.
This latest ruling came after a series of similar ones in recent months. On Nov. 28, the court ordered the unionists to pay a maximum 500 million won as litigation settlement. In October, it also ruled in favor of the company and ordered 11 unionized workers to pay 2 billion won. With Thursday's ruling, the amount the unionized workers have to pay to the company amounts to a total of 12 billion won.
The labor union said it rejects the ruling and plans to immediately appeal to a high court.
"The series of rulings in favor of Hyundai Motor Group shows that the court is nothing more than a spokesman for the company which committed unlawful agency works," an official at the union said.
Some 200 subcontracted unionists occupied a manufacturing line in Ulsan for 25 days from Nov. 15, 2010, demanding permanent employment and an official apology from the company for "suppressing the unionists." The sit-in ended after the company and the labor union entered into negotiations.
The company claims that it could not manufacture some 27,000 vehicles due to the unionists' action and it suffered severe losses amounting to 251.7 billion won.
It filed a total of seven suits claiming compensations for losses caused by the sit-in and they have so far received five rulings in their favor.
The automaker has filed total 16 compensation suits against unionized workers, worth 22.3 billion won, against 684 members of the union during the past three years.
"The ruling shows the court's will to hold the unionists responsible for illegal actions of sit-ins, which exceeded acceptable level," an official of the company said.
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