South Korea’s Yoon prepares to widen back-to-work order amid truckers’ strike By Reuters

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© Reuters. Containers holding tires are stacked at a yard of a tire manufacturing unit on the eleventh day of a nationwide strike by truckers in Daejeon, South Korea December 4, 2022. Yonhap through REUTERS

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By Choonsik Yoo and Josh Smith

SEOUL (Reuters) – South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol on Sunday ordered preparations for widening a back-to-work order past the cement business amid a protracted truckers’ strike.

1000’s of South Korean truckers have been on strike for greater than 10 days, with negotiators for the federal government and unions making no progress on disagreements over minimal pay guidelines.

Yoon, a conservative, on Tuesday invoked a “begin work” order, the primary within the nation’s historical past, on 2,500 drivers within the cement business, requiring them to return to the street or face penalties.

On Sunday Yoon known as on authorities ministers to make preparations to difficulty a return-to-work order on such sectors as oil refining and steelmaking, the place extra harm is predicted, spokesperson Lee Jae-myoung stated in a press release.

Yoon known as for punishment of these violating legal guidelines through the strike, ordering ministers to take motion to minimise harm, akin to using various drivers, navy personnel and navy tools.

The Korean Confederation of Commerce Unions, an umbrella group, is planning a common strike for Tuesday.

“I can not however regard this deliberate strike as a politically motivated motion, slightly than one geared toward representing the employees’ rights,” Yoon stated, in keeping with Lee, signalling a doubtlessly harsh response from the federal government.

“Holding the folks’s dwelling and nationwide financial system hostage presently of financial issue makes the survival of weak, unorganised staff more durable and deprives future generations and most of the people of their future jobs,” Yoon stated.

The strikes have disrupted South Korea’s provide chain, and value 1.6 trillion gained ($1.2 billion) in misplaced shipments over the primary seven days, the business ministry stated on Thursday.

The federal government has stated it might not develop a minimal pay system for truckers past an additional three years. The union says it ought to be everlasting and wider in scope.

1000’s demonstrated in downtown Seoul on Saturday in assist of the truckers’ calls for.