Minister Says Bad Job Is Better Than No Job
By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter
Labor Minister Lee Young-hee appealed to the National Assembly, Thursday, to double the mandatory hiring period for non-permanent workers to four years, saying that a bad job was better than no job.
His plan drew fire from labor organizations, which claim the proposal will make Korea the land of temporary workers. Opponents claim it will lead to companies shunning the hiring of permanent workers.
The government argues that it is designed to forestall massive layoffs around July when a majority of two-year contracts expire. Minister Lee said he will submit the revision bill to the National Assembly next month.
Currently 34 percent of salaried workers are temporary, but the ratio is feared to rise if the bill is revised, according to labor unions.
The Ministry of Labor will face difficulty in revising the bill as opposition parties, including the largest Democratic Party are cool to the proposal.
Ministry official Lee Ki-kwon said time was running out as many workers might be laid off around July when the existing law meant to protect non-permanent workers is set to expire. The original law requires all employers to convert temporary-worker contracts into regular full-time status once workers have been employed for two years.
However, the ministry believes about 70-80 percent of such workers are expected to be laid off, when a grace period ends.
``Against this backdrop, the extension is the most feasible option,'' Minister Lee said. ``Otherwise more workers will lose their jobs amid the deteriorating economic conditions.''
The minister said what was important at this stage was the quantity of jobs rather than the quality, saying ``any bad job is better than no job.''
But the Federation of Korean Trade Unions, one of two major umbrella labor organizations, said Thursday that it will do whatever it can to kill the bill.
``The union has advised the government to provide subsidies or incentives to companies converting the contracts, and not to give them a good excuse to `abuse' workers,'' said FKTU spokesman Kang Chung-ho.
The governing Grand National Party (GNP) is in a no-win situation as it has few sympathizers with the program inside and outside the National Assembly.
The progressive and militant Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) said employers will abuse the system to downgrade all workers to temporary status. Its spokeswoman Wu Moon-suk said, ``Who would want to hire someone on a permanent contract when you can hire him or her for a bargain price for four years? It's time the government and companies share the burden as workers have agreed on job sharing and salary reductions,'' she said.