Sender: o-imap@webmap.missouri.edu
Date: Sat, 25 Jan 97 09:34:28 CST
From: rich%pencil@uga.cc.uga.edu (Rich Winkel)
Organization: PACH
Subject: Korea And the OECD
Article: 4495
To: BROWNH@CCSUA.CTSTATEU.EDU
/** labr.global: 479.0 **/
** Topic: Korea And the OECD **
** Written 8:26 AM Jan 24, 1997 by labornews in cdp:labr.global **
From: Institute for Global Communications <labornews@igc.apc.org>
From: ICFTU@GEO2.poptel.org.uk
Date: Tue, 21 Jan 1997 20:04:54 GMT
Subject: Korea and the OECD
To: ICFTU-EMAIL-ML@GEO2.poptel.org.uk, ICFTU-FAX-ML@GEO2.poptel.org.uk,
ICFTU-PRESS-ML@GEO2.poptel.org.uk
Paris, January 21 1997 (ICFTU OnLine): Trade union pressure is
increasing in the 29 countries member of the Organisation for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD) as the Executive Council of Club
of rich nations
is to meet here on Thursday and take a public
stand on Korea’s new labour legislation. Korea has pledged upon
acceeding to OECD membership in December 1996 to reform labour laws
and put them into conformity with international labour standards,
including freedom of association and the right to collective
bargaining.
But, meeting on Tuesday in Paris, the influential Trade Union Advisory
Committee to the OECD (TUAC) said the new Korean laws, adopted during
a secret parliamentary session on December 26 are a step
backwards
and fall short of the commitment made by Seoul upon
joining the organisation. The Tuesday meeting was attended by a joint
delegation representing the two Korean trade unions (FKTU and KTUC)
who vowed to continue strike action against the new legislation until
it was effectively abrogated. Senior TUAC leaders said that the new
legislation are a slap in the face of governments from OECD
countries
and put the credibility of the organisation into
question
. The TUAC, which represents trade unions in all the 29
OECD countries, called on the OECD to conclude that the new
legislation does not in any significant way meet international
standards and said that the OECD should condemn Korea for justifying
changes in the name of its commitment given to the OECD. There
were no OECD guidelines suggesting that Korea should embark on labour
flexibility, but there were clear indications that the OECD wanted
Korea to conform to standards of the UN’s International Labour
Organisation
said Yoon Young-mo, a KCTU official speaking on
behalf of the two Korean trade union groups.
The TUAC’s view, which included a call to the OECD to press Korea to withdraw the controversial legislation, was presented today at a consultation with the OECD’s Employment, Labour and Social Affairs Committee (ELSAC). The TUAC expect that the Wednesday meeting of the ELSAC will lead to firm recommendations to the OECD Executive Council and to a public condemnation of Korea.
An internal OECD document comparing Korea’s new labour laws with
legislative provisions and labour practices in other OECD countries
concludes that on a number of issues Korea continues to be unique
among OECD countries
to the extent that its labour law restricts
the formation and operation of multiple unions at company, sectorial
and national levels and prevents public service workers from forming
trade unions.
TUAC’s general secretary John Evans called on the OECD to send a
clear message to the Korean government and given the experience
with Korea
to work on an instrument effectively committing member
countries to observe internationally-recognised labour standards.