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Korea’s Metal Workers Call Strike in Push for Yoon’s Exit

Banners calling for the impeachment of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol displayed outside the National Assembly in Seoul, on Dec. 10. (SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- South Korea’s metal workers are staging a strike Wednesday, joining the nationwide protest seeking the resignation of President Yoon Suk Yeol who narrowly survived in an impeachment vote. 

Korean Metal Workers’ Union (KMWU), the country’s largest umbrella union for metal-related industries with 190,000 members, is conducting the one-day labor action on Wednesday, the group said in a statement. Workers at all three Kia Corp plants in the country and at the automaker’s suppliers will strike for four hours, a KMWU spokesman said by phone.

Known for their active participation in politics, Korean unions are joining the widespread public protests pressuring Yoon to resign after his bungled attempt to enact martial law. Labor activists are also calling for better working conditions and higher wages at the rallies. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, the country’s largest umbrella union with 1.2 million members, has announced it will go on a strike until Yoon leaves the office. 

Members at other major companies like Hyundai Motor Co., Posco Holdings Inc. and shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. will not strike on Wednesday, the KMWU spokesman said. The union will hold a meeting on Dec. 19 to decide whether they should go on a strike again as the situation is very fluid. 

In an interview with Bloomberg Television on Wednesday, a union official said the country’s workers could “intensify their actions” depending on the outcome of the second impeachment vote against Yoon expected on Saturday. 

“Either the impeachment motion on Dec. 14 will pass, or Yoon will have to step down to the protests of workers and the people,” said Hyewon Chong, international executive director at KMWU. 

--With assistance from Jiyeun Lee.

(Updates with comments from KMWU official from fifth paragraph.)

©2024 Bloomberg L.P.