Korea Independent Media Center

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BUSINESS AS "USUAL"!

AFTER TWO DAYS OF STRIKE THE

S. KOREAN GOVERNMENT LET ARREST

HUNDREDS OF TRADE UNION ACTIVISTS

After an article on Jinbonet reported in the morning the arrest of 250 female trade unionists(usually they're working in the KTX, the S. Korean high speed/bullet train) now also Korea Times(in the edition for tomorrow, 3.4) confirmed this information. (Well, it must be a special gift by the S.K. government for the coming International Day of Women Struggle!!). And according to the S.K. media much more arrests are expected soon. 

K.Times wrote following article:

Police Begin Rounding Up Striking Rail Workers

The state-run train operator has stripped more than 2,200 striking rail workers of their posts since the union leadership continued a walkout for the third straight day Friday, disrupting the country's train services.

``We've decided to take stern disciplinary action against the strikers for taking part in the illegal walkout, to end the collective action,'' Lee Chul, president of Korea Railroad (Korail), said in a press conference.

He also said that there would be no more official negotiations until the unionists report back to duty, adding management would strictly deal with the strike in accordance with the law as they are holding the public ``hostage'' to press for their demands.

Korail said the number of workers relieved of their posts was estimated at 2,244 _ 1,857 on Friday and 387 on Thursday.

Police have also begun cracking down on the work stoppages, detaining some 200 unionists on charges of illegally staging a sit-in protest in six union chapters across the country.

Police also raided the union headquarters office in Yongsan, central Seoul, confiscating boxes of documents and computer files, while setting up a special arrest unit to apprehend 11 rail union leaders on charges of illegally organizing the collective action.

They are also set to detain some 250 female attendants of the Korea Train Express (KTX), the nation's bullet train, who have been protesting their unstable job security since last Saturday.

More striking workers are likely to be taken into police custody as the government renewed its warning against the strikers that it would mobilize all possible means to end the walkout, indicating a full-scale police crackdown is imminent.

Read the full article here:

http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200603/kt2006030317270410160.htm

S. Korea's semi-official news agency Yonhap reported today this:

Gov't vows stern action against striking railroad workers

The South Korean government warned the country's striking railway workers Friday to return to their jobs or face what it called the highest level of legal punishment.

"The government will continue to maintain its emergency measures without any disruptions to help minimize people's inconvenience from the strike by the (Korean) Railroad Workers' Union," said Kim Chang-ho, head of the Government Information Agency.

Kim said the government was considering "all possible measures" to deal with the illegal strike by the unionized railroad workers.

The remarks followed an emergency meeting of related ministers at the prime minister's office, which was attended by justice, transportation and labor ministers as well as the national police chief.

This was followed by another warning from the employer of the striking workers, whose head said there will be no more negotiations with the striking workers until their return.

"Although (the company) will continue to talk with the union, there will no official or unofficial negotiations," Lee Chul, head of the state-run railroad corporation, said in a news conference.

"We will take stern measures according to our regulations to make sure (the striking workers) can no longer think that they will be forgiven as in the past, even if we have to take disciplinary measures against a large number or all of the striking workers," he added.

The rather quick and harsh response came two days after about 13,000 railroad workers throughout the nation walked off their jobs Wednesday. The labor action caused an estimated loss of at least 10 billion won (US$10.3 million) for the government-funded corporation as of 3 p.m. Friday, and inconvenience for millions of public transportation users.

Korea Railroad has also relieved 2,244 of the striking officials of their posts thus far.

While the repeated threats of legal and company action are causing more workers to break ranks and return to work, most striking employees are sticking to their guns three days into the strike.

The company said the number of striking workers who returned to work has reached 30 percent as of Friday, up from some 22 percent in the previous day.

It pointed to the return of all train engineers that operate the important subway lines in and around the capital city. The subway provides essential transportation to people between Seoul and such cities as Uijeongbu, Goyang, Suwon, Ansan and Cheonan.

The forced curtailing of subway services by the strike has caused severe transportation problems in the capital area over the past few days.

Kim Myoung-hoon, the head of the railroad union, said union members have been ordered to break into smaller groups and disperse to different locations throughout the country to carry on with their walkout until the very end.

The tactic is aimed at avoiding a government crackdown on the striking workers, Kim said in an interview with a local labor newspaper. During a 2003 strike, a government crackdown resulted in the arrest of dozens of union members and company disciplinary actions against thousands of union members, he said.

More than 130 striking workers have already been detained by police while staging separate rallies throughout the nation, including in the Gyeonggi and southern Gyeongsang provinces, according to police officials, while many more were expected to face similar action amid nationwide government crackdowns.

Kim, however, said the union will not give in to such threats, saying the end of the ongoing strike is "strictly up to the company."
"If the company continues to demand the end of our strike by tabling a proposal that the union cannot accept, the union will have no choice but to face death while fighting instead of having to face an insulting submission," he said.

The union leaders said that railway employees have asked the National Human Rights Commission to arbitrate the crackdown by police, stressing that the government's actions are a clear violation of international rules governing walkouts.

The human rights commission said it is reviewing the appeal, but said in order to arbitrate the motion, all 11 of its members would need to concur that the government's emergency measures had violated the rights of workers...

http://english.yna.co.kr/Engnews/20060303/610000000020060303211919E7.html

 The S.K. "left-liberal" daily Hankyoreh published yesterday following editoral:

Pushing Union to the Brink Isn't the Answer

The railway union strike has been going on for two days now, and yesterday members started rehearsing tactics that involve scattering should the police try to intervene at the sit-in. Subsequently it looks like a worst-case scenario in which there is an all-out confrontation can be avoidable.

The effects of the strike are already being felt here and there, so the public desperately wants to know how long it is going to last. It would be most desirable for there to be a quick resolution through good-faith negotiations, but just having an end to the strike will not mean all the problems are gone. The key issues are the need for more employees and the reinstatement of those who have been fired, and the formal hiring of the female attendants on the high speed rail instead of keeping them in their irregular worker status. All the issues are basically connected to government policy. The rail company remains crushed by the massive debt it was left with, and so there is little room for the management to work with.

That is what makes the government's response a problem, because nowhere do you see signs that it wants to try to resolve the situation. When negotiations broke down towards the end of last month it decided to invoke its authority to intervene and in doing so made a legal strike impossible. Forced arbitration is something the even government and ruling party once wanted to abolish, saying it excessively limited unions' right of collective action. Now the government upped the pressure on the union as soon as it went on strike by threatening to send in the riot police. Its attitude appears to be to wait until there is more public opinion critical of the union while continuously pushing it to the brink.

The government has long preached about bringing labor-business relations to a new and higher level. That of course makes sense. Labor-business relations have to be stable for the economy to go well. The premise, however, is going to be a change in how unions are viewed. Currently they are seen as objects of police suppression and control, and they need to be seen as partners in dialogue. Tactics meant to push unions around may be effective in the short-term, but the government needs to realize that it will harm relations over the long run.

http://www.hani.co.kr/arti/opinion/english_editorials/106196.html