Busan bus union agrees to wage hike with management, ends hourslong strike

Passengers wait for buses to arrive in front of Lotte Department Store in Busan as unionized bus workers go on strike, Wednesday. Yonhap

Unionized bus workers in the southeastern port city of Busan reached a last-minute wage hike agreement with management Wednesday, subsequently ending their strike just hours after it began.

The agreement on a 10.48 percent wage hike for 2025 was reached shortly before 1 p.m. between Busan's bus workers' union and their employers through labor mediation, after some workers went on strike early Wednesday morning.

Bus services in Busan were partially disrupted, including during the morning rush hour, as drivers staged the first walkout in 13 years in South Korea's second biggest city after their wage negotiations collapsed over differences over the size of the wage increase.

The union was set to call off the strike shortly after the agreement.

Under the agreement, the two sides also raised the retirement age to 64 from the current 63.