Corea, República de - Anti-union discrimination (2013)

165 public enterprise workers who are members of the Korean Federation of Public Sector and Transportation Workers’ Unions (KPTU) were dismissed from their jobs in retaliation for legitimate union activities. Many of these workers, including 96 members of the KPTU-affiliated Korean Railway Workers’ Union, faced reprisals due to their opposition to public sector privatisation and other actions taken to defend quality public services. Others were fired in an effort to prevent legitimate efforts to improve the poor working conditions faced by irregular public enterprise workers. Dismissed public sector workers, many of whom have been out of a job for several years or more, suffer from economic, social and psychological hardship. Their reinstatement is essential to the normalisation of public sector labour relations and the protection of the Korean people’s right to quality public services.