South Korea government orders striking truckers in cement industry back to work

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–South Korea’s government issued on Tuesday an executive order to force protesting unionised truckers serving the cement industry to return to work, taking into account a huge number of halted construction projects because of the nationwide strike.

The order – the first to be issued under the Trucking Transport Business Act of 2004 – was approved on Tuesday during a cabinet meeting led by President Yoon Suk Yeol, as the truckers’ strike entered its sixth day.

Failure to comply with the order can lead to cancellation of licenses and imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of up to Korean won (W) 30m ($23,000).

The first round of negotiations between the South Korean government and the truckers’ union ended with no deal on 28 November, with next round of negotiations scheduled on 30 November.

“The government has carefully reviewed the damage caused by the prolonged refusal of collective transportation by the Korea Cargo Solidarity, and as a result of comprehensively collecting opinions from related ministries such as the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, cement shipments have decreased by about 90-95% compared to normal,” the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said in a statement on Tuesday.

“Construction is expected to be suspended at most construction sites across the country due to disruptions in cement transportation and suspension of ready-mixed concrete production,” it said.

The increase in construction cost and financial costs would most likely cause a serious crisis in the construction industry and the overall national economy, the ministry said.

The order “would be applied first to the cement sector, which is deemed urgent to be normalized in consideration of the scale of damage and industrial ripple effects”, it said.

Unmet deliveries in the South Korean cement industry in the first four days of the truckers’ strike had cost W46.4bn ($35m), news agency Yonhap reported on 28 November.

This is the second time this year that the Cargo Truckers Solidarity Union (CTSU), which is affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, launched a nationwide protest, calling for the extension of the “Safe Trucking Freight Rate” policy beyond December this year.

In June, economic damage from the eight-day truckers’ strike was estimated at $1.2bn.

The policy introduced in 2020 guarantees a minimum annual wage for truckers, to help them cope with surging fuel costs and to deter dangerous driving. But it is due to expire at the end of this year unless lawmakers pass a legislation for the policy to continue.

The CTSU in a statement on 28 November its members have no plans to comply if such an order was given and plans to hold more than a dozen rallies nationwide.

Focus articles by Nurluqman Suratman

Thumbnail image: Piled-up containers at a port in Busan, South Korea amid truckers’ strike on 28 November 2022. (By Hwa Kyung-min/AP/Shutterstock)

($1 = W1,327)

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