• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.39 no.3
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• pp.99-124
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• 2016

This study analyzed the effects of labor unions on the wages of Korean female workers using 'Korean Labor and Income Panel Study.' In the estimation we considered the self-selection bias due to the women's labor force participation decision and a plausible non-response bias from not answering the question about the company size in terms of number of employees. By fixed effect estimation we found that labor unions in Korea do not increase the wages of both the female union workers and non-union workers who work at a company in which a union is organized comparing to female workers who work at company without a union. This results indicates that female workers who work in the company with labor union tend to have unobserved characteristics that are positively correlated with both wages and the probability to enter the company with labor union. We also came to the conclusion that there is no free-rider effects of non-union workers.

• The Southeast Asian review
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.81-126
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• 2014

Localization of overseas Korean companies has been regarded as one of vital tasks or strategies for decades. However, labor relations have not been the main object of Korean academic researchers. In this paper, I attempt to analyze strategies of localization in labor relations adopted by overseas Korean companies through a qualitative case study of PT. Miwon Indonesia, which has run business successfully for 40 years with recently achieved industrial peace. The company minimized Korean staffs and maximized Indonesian staffs. It pays more than minimum wage, and observes labor law when using outsourcing workers. The managers of the company recognize their labor union as management partner and support union activities through paying bonus for the union head and travel allowances for solidarity gatherings. There is no discrimination between plural unions. Furthermore, collective bargaining is led by indigenous managers according to the musyawarah, a local principle of bargaining. Therefore, PT. Miwon Indonesia could be regarded as a forerunner of localization in labor management among Korean companies in Indonesia. Miwon's case will serve a useful reference when discussing localization of labor management strategies.

• Journal of the Korea Safety Management & Science
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.249-255
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• 2014

The Purpose of this study is to compare occupational accident rate of unionized and non-unionized company and to investigate influences of labor relations on occupational accident rate in Korean manufacturing and construction Industry. Data in 2011 Occupational safety and Health Trend Survey were analyzed for this study. Results show that the occupational accident rate was lower in unionized company than non-unionized company. And amicable labor relationship reduces the occupational accident rate. The policy should be needed to support labor union and improve labor relationship to prevent industrial accidents.

• 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.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.43-75
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• 2007

This study reviews the trend of job separation rates for three years from 2002 to 2005 and investigates the various elements which influence this trend, especially the role of the labor unions, by using Korean Labor Panel data. In the basic statistics, the job retention rate of union members were higher by an average of 28.3% points compared to non-union members, but in the results of controlling the observed variables of individual influences in changing jobs, it was estimated that unions increase the job retention rate by 11% to 13% points. To investigate the effect of unions on the job stability of workers in detail, the non-linear decomposition method developed by Fairlie (2003) was used in the analysis. In examining the difference of job separation rates between union members and non-union members through observed variables of workers in explainable parts and unexplainable parts by using the non-linear decomposition technique, the contribution of the explainable part was estimated to be 67% to 74% and the unexplainable part accounted for the rest which was 26% to 33%. This suggests that not only does the union contribute to the job stability of its members, but the propensity to change jobs for a worker who is a union member is on average lower than that of a worker who is not a union member or who works at an establishment that does not have a union. The results of the empirical analysis show that the job stability effect of labor unions is limited within the boundary of a maximum 7% to 9% points. The reason for the effect of labor unions on job stability being so low is due to various reasons such as collective bargaining structure by company, intensified business competition after the financial crisis, and labor market segmentation.

• Korean Journal of Labor Studies
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.231-276
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• 2017

Chinese society faces increasing outbreaks of labor disputes, may of which are usually characterized as 'the highest level since the establishment of PRC'. Guangdong Province is the hottest place for increasing labor disputes as well as for flexible responses by the local government and labor agencies. Interest-pursuit bargaining model becomes one of the outstanding characteristics for recent labor disputes in Guangdong Province. Chinese central government promulgated well-managed policy package for labor dispute settlement in 2015. Guangdong Province government went one step further by introducing to institutionalize labor dispute settlement. To channel labor dispute conflicts into manageable direction, reliability and capacity of bottom level trade unions become much more essential for the authorities than before. Guangdong Confederation of Trade Unions leads some important experiments of trade union reforms. Employment of 'social cadres' of trade unions by local trade union organizations is the most outstanding experiment to satisfy increasing needs from bottom level ordinary workers who don't have efficient union organizations. It needs to be seen whether changing labor policies go beyond the limits of 'security priority principle'.

• Journal of Labour Economics
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.45-73
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• 2014

This study analyzes the effect of labor unions in Korean manufacturing industry on wage variance of men from 1988 to 2012. The results are as follows. Firstly, the wage variance within establishments is higher than that between establishments, and the wage variance between establishments in the non-union sector has increased significantly compared to that in the union sector since 2000. There is strong evidence that the latter is due to the solidarity wage policy of unions which has strengthened since the early 2000s. Secondly, the influence of labor unions on the wage structure within the union sector has gotten stronger recently despite the general drop in the labor union membership. Thirdly, since the mid-1990s labor unions have contributed to reducing the overall wage variance. It implies that decline in the unionization rate over the years in Korea is likely to have contributed to increasing wage inequality.

• Korean Journal of Labor Studies
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.29-64
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• 2018

This paper reviews the dynamics of growth and decline of Democratic Labor Union(Minju-nojo) Movement from the perspective of the conflicts among the industrial relations actors on the institutional incorporation of KCTU, a transformation of industrial relations institutes, and labor flexecurity in the change of political opportunity. The negotiations for the institutional incorporation of KCTU concluded in the 1997-98 labor laws. Since 1998, the conflicts and the compromises on the change of 1997-98 labor laws has continued. It was a kind of games for the transformation of the institutions of industrial relations and labor flexcurity. But the 1997-98 labor laws has shown the path-dependency. Since 2008, a cycle of the movement has entered a decline stage. The decline of Democratic Labor Union Movement came from the institutionalization of the movement, the change of political opportunity, and a generational change of 1987 cohorts group which has been the center of the movement.

• Journal of Arbitration Studies
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.153-185
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• 2006

This article deals with the Improvement of Compulsory Arbitration System on Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act in Korea. If a labor dispute occcur, the settlement of labor dispute must be reached for the parties' own accord. The autonomy of the parties concerned is the fundamental principle in the settlement of labor dispute. If the Rights Which are guaranteed by art. 33 Constitutional Law belong to civil liberties, we should consider Trade Union Act as the restriction of basic rights. Arbitration is a procedure which permits the most positive intervention by the arbitrator. It is carried out by an arbitration committe which is composed of three arbitrators appointed by the chairman of the Labor Relations Commission. Compulsory arbitration system of the labor for parties should be improved. In case of necessary public enterprises, more strict requirements on assembly for labor disputes should be prepared and the government should support institutions to prevent labor-management disputes by educating experts on labor-management relations and improving the quality of arbitration.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.475-509
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• 2011

Taking 195 Korean businesses and sorting them out according to the unit types, this study looks into how flexibility strategy in labor market, which consists of numerical flexibility and functional flexibility, takes effect on the organization's outcome variable, which in turn consists of productivity, labor-management cooperation, and job security. In addition, the present study analyzes the role of labor union's moderating effect on the relationship among labor market flexibility, labor-management cooperation, and job security. It is found out as a result that numerical flexibility has no meaningful relation with productivity, labor-management cooperation, and job security, while functional flexibility has a considerably positive relation with them. This result confirms the importance of functional flexibility of business strategy in labor market. The West has continuously insisted the importance of functional flexibility, pointing out problems of numerical flexibility. On the other hand, considering that this study has confirmed functional flexibility's meaningful relation, while it has not found out numerical flexibility's negative relation, it is necessary to study further on the relationship between these two kinds of flexibility. The result of analysis on the role of union power's moderating effect confirms only the union power's interaction effect in the relation between numerical flexibility and labor-management cooperation. The possibility of union's opportunistic behavior can be detected in this result.