Corea, República de - Contract workers hired after strike (2011)

In November the Korean Metal Workers’ Union (KMWU) reached an agreement with Kiryung Electronics over a strike concerning contract workers. Precariously employed women workers at Kiryung Electronics had formed a union in July 2005. On 24 August 2005, the KMWU members started a strike when the company, contrary to promises, had failed to directly employ and had instead sacked dispatched workers that the company claimed were sub-contracted. In the November 2010 agreement, the company promised to hire the remaining ten union members on strike into permanent positions and both sides agreed to withdraw their lawsuits. The case is particularly significant as it is the first time in Korea that an employer has agreed to directly hire dismissed irregular workers into permanent positions.