• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.95-136
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• 2013

Using Workplace Panel Survey of 2005, 2007 and 2009 waves, this study estimates the effects of trade unions on employment and the proportion of irregular workers, short-term and part-time workers, and agent temporary and outsourced workers. While the estimation result shows that the percentage of hired workers increases under union presence, these results seem to be contaminated with bias because the differences between unionized firms before union establishment and non-unionized firms are not completely controlled even after adjusting for observed characteristics. Meanwhile, unionized firms and non-unionized firms with grievance procedures employ higher proportion of irregular workers. The proportion of short-term and part-time workers increases only when they are entitled to join trade unions. These imply that the rise in the percentage of irregular workers due to unions and grievance procedures is attributed to the increase in the percentage of agent temporary and outsourced workers. Also, when short-term and part-time workers are allowed to join the union, the firm replaces agent temporary and outsourced workers with short-term and part-time workers, so that the proportion of irregular workers do not change.

• Korean Journal of Labor Studies
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.105-137
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• 2013

This paper proposes to examine the relationship between the two trade unions of Hyundai Motor Company (HMC) - those of the regular workers and of the in-house subcontract workers - around the issue of converting irregular workers to regular ones, which has been a social issue for a long time, and, furthermore, to find a desirable solution. The politics of the in-house subcontracting rotate around three axes: the conflictive collusion between the company and the regular workers'union regarding the internal labor market; the exclusion and resistance between the company and the subcontract workers'union; and the solidaristic conflict relationship between the two unions. After the final decree by the supreme court in 2012 the conflict and collusion/solidarity relationship of the three social actors have been amplified in scale - the continuous limping of the special bargaining between the company and the unions, the intensified conflict between the company and the subcontract workers'union, and the crisis of the collusion between the branches of the two unions are all evidence of this. A clue to the solution to the issues of in-house subcontracting in HMC can be found through reestablishment of the relationship among the three actors. In order to solve the in-house subcontracting issues in HMC, phased and lawful switching from irregular to regular positions, improvement of working conditions for the irregular workers, integration of the two unions (realization of 'one company one union'), and negotiated flexibility in the internal labor market will be required. Also to be considered are installation of a special committee for the issue, and utilization of external consultants. The result would be the possibility for the corporate labor market of HMC to be composed of regular workers, legal contract workers and directly-employed contract workers, which could be realized through bilateral relations of 'the labor and management conflict partnership'.

• Korean Journal of Labor Studies
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.139-176
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• 2011

Non-regular workers came to the fore while working class formation was in retreat along with the democratic labor movement of regular workers. The formation of principal agents, however, is yet to occur. Then, why non-regular workers' struggles could not yield a consequence in that regard? What kind of factors are to determine the outcome of the struggles and how do they do it? It is the aim of this study to answer those questions. In contrast with regular workers' struggles, non-regular workers' struggles tend to break out in response to capitalist offensives, rely on atypical and, often, extreme measures of struggle rather than strike in the form of work stoppage, drag out for too long, and appeal for social solidarity outside when the solidarity of regular workers is not available. Non-regular workers' struggles tend to end up with failure rather than success, and with weakening rather than strengthening of their organizational strength. So as to overcome the tendency to fail, non-regular workers' struggles need regular workers' solidarity in addition to their own strong mobilization power, while social solidarity or positional power could substitute for regular workers' solidarity in some cases. So as to build up their organizational strength, non-regular workers' struggles should win victories in the struggles, while a victory could turn into a trap in the case of conversion. Both regular workers' solidarity and the internal integration of the struggles are two foremost important factors in achieving the victory of struggles and the building-up of organizational strength. Those who have got involved in struggles are from the best organized sector among all the non-regular workers. As they have gone through weakening of organizational strength, it becomes more difficult for non-regular workers to form principal agents. Without non-regular workers' struggles, however, the capitalist offensives must have carried the day. In that sense, non-regular workers' struggles did a role in at least detaining capitalist offensives, if not stopping them. The practical implication of non-regular workers' struggles is that, if non-regular workers redefine the ultimate goal of their struggles as the formation of their principal agents for working class formation, it would be a strategically rational choice to identify the strategic objective of struggles with the maintaining and strengthening of their organizational strength rather than the achievement of their immediate demands.

• Korean Journal of Labor Studies
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.169-200
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• 2008

노동계급은 다양한 형태의 내적 이질성을 지니고 있으며, 신자유주의 경제정책과 구조조정 과정에서 고용형태에 따른 이질성은 계급균열로 발달하며 노동계급 내적 이질성 논의의 핵심을 구성하게 되었다. 국내의 선행 연구들도 정규직과 비정규직 사이의 물질적 존재조건의 양극화 추세와 사회적 관계의 위계적 배제적 성격을 확인해 주고 있다. 하지만 정규직과 비정규직 사이의 계급균열이 극복되고 노동계급의 내적 통합과 계급형성 과정을 이룰 수 있는지에 대한 논의로 발전하지는 못했다. 본 연구는 계급균열의 극복과 노동계급 통합의 가능성을 검토하기 위해 계급균열의 핵심인 비정규직 노동자 문제를 둘러싼 정규직 비정규직의 의식 수준의 비교연구를 실시한다. 본 연구는 민주노총 공공운수연맹 노동조합원들에 대한 설문조사와 심층면접 연구를 통해 계급균열의 존재를 확인하고 그 원인과 의미를 분석하였다. 첫째, 정규직과 비정규직 노동자들은 비정규직 문제에 대한 인식을 공유하고 있지만 구체적 해결책에 대해서는 입장 차이를 보임으로써 고용형태에 따른 계급균열은 존재하며, 경제위기 이후에도 해소되지 않고 고착화되고 있음을 확인시켜 주었다. 둘째, 고용형태에 따른 계급내적 균열이 비정규직 문제 인식과 추상적 원칙 수준에서는 유의미한 의식 차이를 보이지 않지만 비정규직 문제 해결을 위한 구체적 해결책에 대해 유의미한 입장 차이를 보이는 것은 정규직과 비정규직 사이의 물질적 이해관계의 차이 때문이다. 정규직 노동자들은 비정규직 노동자들의 고용안정성과 노동조건의 개선을 허용하더라도 자신들의 이해관계가 위협받지 않는 수준에서 이루어져야 한다고 보는 것이다. 셋째, 정규직 노동자들이 추상적 원칙 수준에서는 비정규직 노동자들과 동질성을 보이지만 구체적 대안에서 차별성을 보이는 것은 정규직 노동자들의 의식의 양면성을 표현하는 것이며, 물질적 이해관계에 기초한 개인적 수준의 합리성과 계급적 원칙에 기초한 계급적 수준의 합리성이 갈등하고 있는 것이다. 넷째, 정규직 노동자들의 주관성 속에서 개인적 합리성과 계급적 합리성이 갈등하는 정도는 노동조합 가입 여부 및 소속 노동조합의 정체성, 즉 이익집단 정체성 혹은 계급조직 정체성에 의해 결정된다. 여기에 계급조직 정체성을 지닌 민주노조들이 노동계급 계급균열을 극복하고 계급형성을 이루는데 기여할 수 있다는 실천적 함의가 있다.

• Korean Journal of Labor Studies
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.143-178
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• 2018

This study is aimed at empirically examining the Korean unionists' solidarity using the survey of 476 full-time workers employed at the unionized workplace. It also questions the determinants affecting the unionist' willingness to be united with the contingent workers. The Korean unionism has faced the biggest challenge, that is, the crisis-in-worker solidarity. Although prior literature has noted the crisis in Korean unionism, it lacks a solid investigation of individual workers' perception of solidarity which may play a key role in building up worker-solidarity in the union movement. This study first examines the three sources of solidarity allowing for the historical and theoretical approach to the modern solidarity; economic interests, worker-identification and empathy, which provide an emprical framework for this study. The empirical evidences shows dynamic aspects as of how the full-timers perceive solidarity with the non-regular workers in the three terms of solidarity. First, full-time unionists share rare willingness to be united with contingent workers in terms of economic solidarity. In addition, the KCTU (Korean Confederation of Trade Unions) with social reformative orientation has little influence on increasing their member's orientation towards solidarity. Second, it is found that full-time unionists have more willingness to identify themselves with the non-regular workers as a member of the labor class. The KTCU is also positively associated with their member's will of identification with contingent workers. Third, the unionists, however, show little empathy toward non-regular workers, which is contrast to the willingness to worker identification. No causality is also found between the KTCU and their members' empathy for the others.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.143-157
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• 2014

The purpose of this study is twofold. First, it shows how to calculate the size of nonregular workers in Korea using the supplemental surveys to the Economically Active Population Surveys. Second, it decomposes the difference in the share of nonregular workers between 2005 and 2013 by a Oaxaca-type method.. The obtained results indicate that the differences in coefficients rather than the differences in characteristics are mainly responsible for the decline in the share of nonregular workers. This implies that a worker with the same characteristics is more likely to be a regular worker in 2013 than in 2005. This tendency may come from the changes in workers's as well as firms' employment practices. Also, it is suspected that the Nonregular Worker Act enacted in 2007 may have contributed to the decrease in the share of nonregular workers.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.386-396
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to examine the non-regular labor dispute from beginning to the ends, thus, give guidance for future similar labor disputes. As a result of this study, firstly, subcontract company union negotiated with their companies, but after their companies was shut up, the union demanded negotiation with Hynix Co.(Hynix Co. contracted with union member's companies about cleaning job etc for every year). However, Hynix rejected the union's demand, because Hynix Co. do not have the legal obligation to negotiate with subcontract company union. Secondly, union members was to in unemployment and for the employment & negotiation with Hynix Co. they did illegal actions against Hynix Co. Thirdly, there was tried many efforts by NGO & government authorities etc to settle the disputes, and mediated, arbitrated by private expert(Certified Public Labor Attorney) Finally, both parties(that is Hynix Co. and subcontract company union) negotiated each other and settled the dispute without employment.

• International Area Studies Review
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.221-251
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• 2018

Two-tier wage systems mean the dual wage systems that the new wage system require the new future employees to get much lower wage level, compared to the level of wages for existing employees under the existing wage system. While it allows employers to benefit from low-cost advantages, the two-tier wage systems is definitely a type of wage discrimination by the collusion between management and trade unions in that it forces the new future employee to accept the low wages. Also it reflects extreme collectivism which old union members try to keep having their jobs and wages at the sacrifice of future members' wages. The two-tier wage systems had been introduced by airplane industry in 1980s and introduced again in Big Three auto companies in 2007. The purpose of this paper is to examine the history, contents, and details of two-tier wage system in the United States and to think of the possibility of recurrence of the systems in the context of Korean auto industry in the near future. The tentative findings from this paper implies that the two-tier wage systems will likely happen in Korean auto industry because the collusion between trade unions and management are found easily and the degree of extreme collectivism favored by the old permanent union members is seriously high. It is time for trade unions to go back to their original ideals and purposes and to revitalize solidarity among workers.

• Korean Journal of Labor Studies
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.79-108
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• 2017

Using data sets from the Korean Labour and Income Panel Study (KLIPS) for the period 2003-2015, this study shows that wages of nonunion workers are positively related to the percentage of unionized workers in the same geographic region. A 10 percentage point increase in a region's union density is associated with a 4.9 percent increase in the region's average wage of nonunion workers. It is also shown that this positive spillover effect is observed for various subgroups of nonunion workers, including women, youth, low-educated workers, small firm employees, and those employed under nonstandard work arrangements. In contrast, the average wage of union workers is found to respond insignificantly to changes in a region's union density.

• Korean Journal of Labor Studies
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.1-28
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• 2018

This paper studies and evaluates the present situation of three decades of 'Minjoonojoundong' in Korea with a long-term perspectives. It had grown up during 1987 labour regime era and has declined abruptly since 1998. The backdrop of this decline was the transformation of labour regime from the 1987 regime to the dependent neoliberal one. The Korean labour movement did not respond to the changed structural conditions as it sustained its old strategies, militant unionism. Now the 'Minjoonojoundong' in Korea has met three difficult problems that are connected with each others. They are militant economism, political economism and formal industrial unionism. However the 'Candlelight Revolution' occurred in 2016 winter has opened a chance of regime change that could strengthen the 'Minjoonojoundong'. The revolution was primarily a political one. But it also created a dramatic situation change in labour politics. The candle-citizen demanded radical change of the polarized Korean society and overflown contingent workers. So it is a time of radical and overall innovation for the 'Minjoonojoundong' and KCTU. And they have to keep the long-term strategical vision of labour regime change.