Striking Korean truckers vote to return to work

Reuters Videos
2 年前

STORY: As their walkout entered a third week, South Korean truckers came to a conclusion: they weren't winning.

President Yoon Suk-yeol was refusing to concede over a financial protection scheme for drivers.

And public support was waning.

Many businesses were prepared to weather the short-term pain of the strike , which began on Nov. 24.

On Friday the truckers' union said that 62% of members voted to call off the strike as a result.

But it vowed to continue its minimum wage campaign

The move came after the government increased pressure, issuing unprecedented "start work" orders,

Some of the 25,000 striking truckers headed back to work after the decrees.

Drivers told Reuters they faced the prospect of not only lost income but lost jobs.

"(The government) behaved exactly like a wall. They were only on the offensive, there was no communication with the workers or the union. They even changed some terms regarding negotiations, so it ended up with us becoming their enemies."

The government says the damage done by the strike was "astronomical".

One estimate put the cost to the economy at $2.66 billion after the first 12 days of the stoppage.

Ministers have offered to extend current wage protections for three more years, but otherwise stood firm.

They say drivers are already well paid.