ED Progressive union's rise

KCTU should lead labor movement in right direction

The progressive Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), one of the nation's two umbrella labor organizations, overtook the conservative Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU) in membership for the first time since the former was launched in 1995. The KCTU's rise is meaningful as it came amid the conservatives' aggressive ideological offensive.

The organization rate of unions rose to 11.8 percent in Korea last year, up from 10.7 percent in 2017. It was the highest since 2000 when the rate topped 12 percent in the wake of the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis. Yet, it is still far lower than those of the United Kingdom (24 percent) and Japan (17 percent), let alone the near 60 percent in northern European countries.

Another problem is that the rate is too low for smaller companies. Companies hiring 300 workers or more show an average unionization rate of 50.6 percent, but for businesses with 30 to 99 workers it plunges to 2.2 percent, and firms hiring fewer than 30 have a meager 0.1 percent.

The polarized unionization cannot help but work disadvantageously for more vulnerable workers in this society, which has a vertical industrial structure and sees few collective negotiations by industry. The management and government are to blame for the current situation. Still, labor leaders can hardly avoid criticism, either, for failing to stage a more universal and equitable labor movement. People are watching whether the KCTU will be able to get a qualitative turnaround on labor issues congruous to its quantitative growth.

Before blaming the conservative camp's attacks, the KCTU should first reflect on itself and try to understand why the public is criticizing it. It also should strive hard to prevent the escalation of labor-labor conflicts amid a fiercer competition with the FKTU, which will struggle to regain its status as the top umbrella union.

We urge the government not to back off from worker-friendly policies such as the 52-hour workweek and the protection of irregular workers. The National Assembly should not just sit and watch the setback of unionism. The entire society should realize that without a mature relationship among labor, management and government the nation can't hope for either industrial growth or an advanced labor market.