Labor Board Fails to Conclude Posco Review as Union Submits 2,000 Pages of Documents

Concerns over case processing delays and prolonged labor-management conflicts that were raised even before the enforcement of the so-called Yellow Envelope Law (the revised Trade Union Act) are becoming reality. The expansion of employer status definitions and broadened bargaining scope have funneled a flood of related disputes to labor relations commissions simultaneously, while deep disagreements between labor and management are dragging out deliberation times. According to labor circles on June 3, the Gyeongbuk Regional Labor Relations Commission failed to reach a conclusion on a bargaining unit separation case filed by the Posco Labor Union, affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), and decided to hold an additional meeting on June 8. The core issue in the case is whether to separate the bargaining units of the KCTU-affiliated union and the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU)-affiliated union. The Gyeongbuk commission said, "Sharp disagreements between the parties over employer status and bargaining unit separation require additional verification." In this case, materials submitted by the KCTU side alone exceeded 2,000 A4 pages, and POSCO Holdings (005490.KS) also mounted an active defense, reportedly extending the deliberation. Posco had previously posted a public notice of bargaining demands from an FKTU-affiliated subcontractor union. On the day, Posco conveyed its position to the Gyeongbuk commission that employer status determinations must be made strictly in line with the intent of the revised Trade Union Act. Both industry and labor view the postponement as a case that encapsulates concerns raised before the law took effect. Business groups and experts have long warned that once new issues — including principal employer status, scope of bargaining subjects, bargaining unit separation, and single bargaining channel requirements — erupt simultaneously after the law's enforcement, caseloads at labor commissions could surge. Since each case requires detailed examination of factual circumstances, contract structures, and whether substantive control exists, the adjudication burden was bound to grow significantly, and critics have pointed out that processing delays are inevitable under the current staffing structure of the labor commissions. Cases have indeed been flooding into the commissions since the law took effect. From May 10 to May 30, 153 applications related to public notices of bargaining demands and 115 applications for bargaining unit separation were filed. Only 13 labor relations commissions nationwide are available to adjudicate these cases. Total cases handled by labor commissions including the National Labor Relations Commission reached 21,389 in 2024, a 33% increase in two years, yet staffing levels have remained virtually unchanged. A former senior official at a labor commission said, "Labor commissions have long suffered from severe understaffing and work overload. The burden of administering the newly enacted revised Trade Union Act is also considerable." The fact that government guidelines are not functioning properly in the field is also cited as a problem. Under the Ministry of Employment and Labor's interpretive guidelines, in principle, only agenda items for which employer status is recognized become subjects of bargaining. For example, the government's position is that wages are in principle not a bargaining subject. However, labor groups plan that once employer status is recognized for certain agenda items and bargaining begins, they will also raise other issues such as wages during actual negotiations. The Public Solidarity Union, which obtained recognition of principal employer status against four public institutions the previous day, also stated, "Wage bargaining is absolutely necessary for substantive improvement of working conditions." As the labor commissions must now factor in such unforeseen situations when making decisions, processing delays are likely to worsen further. The problem is that the longer commission decisions take, the greater the likelihood that labor-management conflicts will become prolonged. Unions may view bargaining delays themselves as an unfair response, and some in the labor movement are signaling they will push ahead with bargaining regardless of the commission's judgment. Employers, on the other hand, face the burden that engaging in bargaining without clear standards could entangle them in additional legal disputes. Critics point out that while the channels for dispute resolution have widened, the administrative infrastructure to handle them has not kept pace — a fundamental mismatch. Experts agree that bolstering the functions of labor commissions is urgent to reduce confusion. They argue that commissions must present clearer standards for employer status determinations across bargaining agenda items to minimize chaos in the field. Kim Hee-sung, a professor at Kangwon National University's law school, said, "From a budget control perspective, public corporations, public institutions, and local governments are highly likely to be recognized as employers," adding, "We need to consider how to cope with the growing volume of bargaining applications and burdens in the public sector."

Labor Board Fails to Conclude Posco Review as Union Submits 2,000 Pages of Documents

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