The government has formally proposed "single-issue social dialogue" to labor and management to discuss labor exemptions to be included in a special law on semiconductor mega clusters. Unions are likely to join the talks but remain opposed to the exemptions themselves, pointing to a difficult negotiation ahead.
Kim Young-hoon, minister of employment and labor, said at a briefing at the Government Complex Seoul on the 15th that the government was proposing single-issue social dialogue on the labor exemptions in the mega cluster special law. The talks will provide a forum for dialogue and compromise in which stakeholders take part directly to strengthen industrial competitiveness and create quality jobs, the minister said. President Lee Jae-myung also proposed resolving the exemption issue through social dialogue when he met the heads of the Federation of Korean Trade Unions and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions on the 3rd of this month.
The labor exemptions under discussion for the mega cluster law include exempting high-earning employees from working-hour rules, known as a white-collar exemption, expanding flexible working-hour arrangements and extending the maximum period for employing fixed-term workers to four years. Unions are said to be seeking a four-day workweek. Working hours and employment will be the core agenda items, the minister said.
Business groups, which have called for the exemptions, issued no separate statement on the day but are expected to join the talks. The two umbrella union groups, which said last month they were willing to take part in social dialogue, also appear inclined to accept the government's proposal. The Federation of Korean Trade Unions said it would engage in the discussions responsibly so that the mega cluster leads to better quality of life for workers. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions plans to review the proposal at a central executive committee meeting on the 17th before setting its final position. Participation by the confederation at the level of the umbrella organization in such single-issue talks would be its first since social dialogue on overcoming the COVID-19 crisis in 2020, six years ago.
Even with both sides at the table, agreement is expected to be difficult given strong union opposition over the need for and scope of the exemptions. Separately from joining the talks, the two umbrella groups oppose introducing the exemptions. The National Assembly's legislative timetable is also likely to be a variable. If a mega cluster bill containing the labor exemptions is introduced before the social dialogue concludes, union resistance could intensify. Whether a bill to be introduced shortly will include the labor exemptions is a matter for the legislature and cannot be stated definitively, the minister said.
