Gov't to help protect shipyard jobs
Employment and Labor Minister Lee Ki-kweon, center, speaks during a press conference announcing the government assistance for financially troubled local shipbuilders in Seoul, Thursday. / Yonhap
Big 3 companies excluded from support due to strike
By Lee Kyung-min
The government plans to spend 750 billion won ($650 million) to help prevent massive layoffs at more than 7,800 companies in the ailing shipbuilding industry, Thursday.
However, the nation’s top three shipbuilders ― Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI), Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) ― will be exempted from receiving support unless their labor unions stop opposing the companies’ self-restructuring plans.
Employment and Labor Minister Lee Ki-kweon announced the shipbuilding sector’s eligibility for the government’s special support program for one year starting today.
The move comes amid an industry-wide slump due to a decrease in overseas contracts, following which an estimated 63,000 workers are at risk of losing their jobs by the end of next year.
“The government decided to implement the measure to help prevent layoffs in the troubled sector and minimize the negative impact to the regional economy,” Lee said during a press conference in Seoul.
“The current economic slump can only be overcome by a joint effort of union members and management to reach a compromise.”
Under the program, the government will offer financial support for up to one year for companies that suspend operations instead of firing workers by paying part of the workers’ wages.
The government will also increase the amount of subsidies for companies that pay for workers’ job training. If the workers receive the training while on paid leave, the government will cover the full cost for firms that have less than 1,000 employers, and 70 percent for those with 1,000 workers or more.
It will pay for severance packages and back wages to workers whose companies went bankrupt or closed after a minimum of six months of operation.
The government will spend a total of 750 billion won to set up a shipbuilding worker training center in the southern regions where a large number of shipbuilding workers live, including Ulsan, Geoje and Jinhae in South Gyeongsang Province and Yeongam County in South Jeolla Province.
“We understand that offering such a large amount of government subsidies to a particular sector should earn the public consensus first. Also, our stance is that a strike is not the answer,” a labor ministry official said, pledging to continue monitoring the number of laid-off workers and their rehiring rate.
For the top three shipbuilders, the ministry said they still have orders and are unlikely to fire workers anytime soon.
The unions of the companies said earlier they would stage a strike against the government’s request to submit self-restructuring measures, which may include pay cuts and layoffs.
“The management and the unions of the companies have not come up with detailed self-restructuring plans,” the official said.
Once they submit plans, the government will review them and decide whether to include the three companies in the support program.