CINA

본문

"HAPPY" NEW YEAR!

But Unfortunately the Capitalism

is Still Ruling!!

K. Times predicted in its latest (online)edition following for S. Korea's working class - at least for a large part of it:

Non-Regular Workers Face Mass Layoffs
 
Non-regular workers face layoffs en masse as employers are trying to beat the July 1 deadline to give regular worker status to part-timers who have worked in the same job for more than two years.

 
Already the Office of Court Administration decided to let go of its non-regular security guards, while HSBC is moving to replace its sizable non-regular workforce.

This sentiment is generally shared by employers who fear an increase in payroll and benefits.
 

Only 11 percent of the surveyed 592 companies said they will provide regular jobs for non-regular workers, while 63.3 percent of the respondents said they will give the status to only those eligible for regular job status. The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry conducted the survey.
 

The law on the protection of non-regular workers will take effect in July for firms having 300 employees or more. Companies with 100 to 299 workers will be subject to the law from July 2008 and those with less than 100 workers from September 2009.
 

The first case of dismissal started in the public sector. The Office of Court Administration said it has not renewed yearly contracts with 40 non-regular security guards in courts nationwide last month.
 

The Office of Court Administration is expected to hire new non-regular employees who will replace those who worked for two years or more.
 

In the case of HSBC, a major foreign bank operating here, some 500 or 40 percent of its total 1,200 employees have the status of non-regular workers.
 

The ratio of non-regular employees including temporary workers in the bank is high, compared with the average of 20 percent to 30 percent in Korean banks.
 

HSBC hires all newcomers in the form of non-regular or contract jobs. It gave regular worker status to only 10 percent to 20 percent of these in the past, although it raised this to 60 percent to 70 percent between 2005 and 2006.
 

Financial firms have hired more contract workers of late to cut costs but are under growing pressure to convert their status to regular jobs.
 

An official of the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), a business lobby, said the obligatory conversion to regular jobs will be a big burden on enterprises, citing unfavorable economic conditions.
 

``Smaller companies could lower payrolls under the law. The law aimed at reducing the number of non-regular workers may bring about an overall reduction in new hiring,'' he said.

http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200701/kt2007010317243310230.htm