Tough parliamentary hearing expected for conservative labor minister nominee
Labor Minister nominee Kim Moon-soo speaks to reporters in front of his office building in Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap
Labor Minister nominee Kim Moon-soo is expected to face a tough National Assembly confirmation hearing as opposition lawmakers vow to grill him over his perceived far-right stance and past remarks aimed at undermining the labor movement here, according to political analysts, Thursday.
Kim, 72, currently chairs the presidential Economic, Social and Labor Council and is the former governor of Gyeonggi Province. The presidential office announced his nomination for the minister post on Wednesday.
The nomination quickly drew heavy criticism from opposition lawmakers and labor groups, who viewed it as a significant misstep in President Yoon Suk Yeol's Cabinet appointments. The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) argued that a confirmation hearing for Kim would be "a waste of time."
"At this point, discussing President Yoon's talent pool is pointless because it seems non-existent," said DPK member Rep. Yun Kun-young in a radio interview, Thursday.
"Kim isn’t really the chair of the Economic, Social and Labor Council. He’s more like a conservative YouTuber. I’m genuinely curious how anyone could consider appointing him as the minister of employment and labor," the lawmaker said.
The date for Kim's confirmation hearing has not yet been set, but according to related laws, the Assembly must complete the confirmation process for a minister nominee within 20 days of the government's submission of a nomination proposal.
President Yoon Suk Yeol poses with Kim Moon-soo, head of the presidential Economic, Social, and Labor Council, during an appointment ceremony at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Sept. 30, 2022. Korea Times photo by Seo Jae-hun
Before entering politics in his mid-40s, Kim was a prominent figure in the labor movement during the 1970s and 1980s. He then served two full terms and one partial term as a conservative lawmaker from 1996 until 2006, followed by two terms as the governor of Gyeonggi Province from 2006 to 2014.
Kim, who has been a vocal critic of the previous liberal Moon Jae-in administration, has caused controversies for his blunt and often harsh rhetoric.
In 2019, during a debate hosted by the conservative party, he stated that Moon "deserves to be executed by a firing squad" for his perceived mishandling of state affairs. In a 2022 parliamentary session, the former governor accused Moon of adhering to "Kim Il-sung's ideology," alleging that the former president had praised the late scholar and activist Shin Young-bok. Shin was imprisoned by the previous dictatorship for his support of left-wing ideologies.
Kim is also known to be a loyalist of former President Park Geun-hye who was impeached in 2017 over corruption scandals. The former governor participated in the so-called Taegeukgi protests, or flag-waving rallies held by ultra-right-wing groups, calling for the nullification of Park's impeachment, several times in 2017.
Kim Moon-soo, right, then-head of the emergency committee of the conservative Saenuri Party, participates in a rally organized by conservative civic groups opposing former President Park Geun-hye's impeachment, Feb. 4, 2017. Yonhap
Labor groups have also expressed strong opposition to Kim's nomination, condemning what they view as his "anti-labor stance."
During a months-long strike by HiteJinro truck drivers in the summer of 2022, Kim stated on his YouTube channel that "bombarding the laborers with damage claims is the most effective remedy for illegal strikes."
As chair of the presidential Economic, Social, and Labor Council in March 2023, Kim posted a photo on Facebook from his visit to Gwangju Global Motors — a joint venture between Hyundai Motor and the Gwangju Metropolitan Government — along with a comment that read: "I was touched. There is no labor union here."
In response to mounting criticism, Kim dismissed concerns about his suitability for the ministerial role.
"My wife, my brother-in-law, and I all come from labor union backgrounds. But it is right that laborers take responsibility for damages caused by illegal strikes," the nominee told reporters, Thursday.
He also defended his controversial remarks about Moon, stating, "Former President Moon said he respects late Shin Young-bok as a scholar, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for violating the National Security Law. The historical records are all there."
Kim emphasized that if appointed, he would offer candid advice to the president on labor policies.
Political analyst Park Sang-byeong suggested that Kim might have been the "best available candidate" within the Yoon administration's limited talent pool.
"Kim may be seen as an outdated politician, but from the president’s perspective, he is a suitable candidate to spearhead labor reforms," Park told The Korea Times.
The president has promised major overhauls in the medical, education and labor sectors. In the labor sector, Yoon vowed to dismantle the "cartels" within unions that have vested interests and to create a more flexible employment market.
"Given Kim’s background and his previous remarks about liberal lawmakers, there is a high likelihood that he will be rejected in the confirmation hearing. However, the president is expected to proceed with Kim’s appointment without parliamentary approval, as he has done in the past," Park said.
Since taking office in May 2022, Yoon has failed to secure the Assembly's endorsement 25 times for his ministerial-level appointments, with the most recent one being Lee Jin-sook, who became head of the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) on Wednesday.