Parliamentary subcommittee passes pro-labor ‘yellow envelope bill’

A parliamentary labor subcommittee on Tuesday unilaterally passed an opposition-led bill aimed at limiting companies from making claims for damages against legitimate labor union disputes. The labor bill, which passed through the previous National Assembly and was vetoed by President Yoon Suk Yeol late last year, has faced opposition from business lobbies and the ruling People Power Party (PPP). On Tuesday, PPP lawmakers left the meeting of the environment and labor committee in protest of the Democratic Party's move to unilaterally pass the bill, which restricts management from filing damage suits against workers on strike. The revision to the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act has been referred to the committee's plenary session. The controversial issue dates back to May 2009, when unionized workers of SsangYong Motor Co. staged a strike to oppose layoffs. Five years later, the Supreme Court declared the strike illegal and ordered the workers to pay 4.7 billion won (US$3.6 million) in compe nsation to the company and the state. Civic activists then delivered yellow envelopes with donations to support the SsangYong workers, raising the need to amend the trade union law in favor of striking workers. The revision has since been nicknamed the "yellow envelope bill." SsangYong Motor changed its name to KG Mobility last year after being acquired by a local consortium led by the chemical-to-steel firm KG Group. Source: Yonhap News Agency