By Kim Bo-eun
Unions' demand for next year’s minimum wage to be 10,000 won ($8.8) fell through after representatives of management barely changed their stance during the 10th meeting with their labor and government counterparts, Wednesday.
Up until the ninth meeting, labor representatives insisted on a minimum wage of 10,000 won (a 54.6 percent raise), while management demanded a minimum wage of 6,625 won (a 2.4 percent raise) from this year’s 6,470 won.
For the past decade, management has called for a minimum wage freeze each year. This year, it unconventionally called for a slight raise.
But as the meetings stretched on beyond the official deadline of June 29, labor and management each conceded, with labor calling for 9,570 won (a raise of 47.9 percent) and management 6,670 won (a 3.1 percent raise).
The minimum wage commissioner requested both parties present a second revision, but the meeting ended after union representatives refused.
“It is considerable progress that management gave up their decade-long call for a wage freeze and labor revised their demand for 10,000 won,” Commissioner Uh Soo-bong said.
However, he urged both sides to narrow the gap further and decide on the wage at an appropriate time through a vote.
The next meeting will take place Saturday. Representatives will likely present their second revisions and vote by Sunday.
The minister of employment and labor must announce the minimum wage Aug. 5 and an agreement must be reached 20 days before that in order to pass administrative procedures.
This makes Sunday the de facto deadline.
At the ninth meeting, four members of the management group representing small- and medium-sized enterprises did not show up, resisting the rejection of their demand for the minimum wage to be differentiated for eight business sectors: internet cafes, convenience stores, supermarkets, gas stations, hairdressers, restaurants, taxis and concierge positions. They claim a minimum wage hike in these sectors poses too much of a burden on small businesses and mom-and-pop stores.
However, they were present at the ninth meeting, after the commission accepted the call for an inspection into the circumstances for each sector.
Last year’s negotiations raised the minimum wage for this year by 7.3 percent.
The Moon Jae-in administration has pledged to raise the minimum wage to 10,000 won by 2020.