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Korean Confederation of Trade Unions
The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), literally translated as National Confederation of Democratic Trade Unions, also known as Minju-nochong (Korean: 민주노총; an acronym for "KCTU" in Korean), is a national trade union centre in South Korea officially established in 1995. Its predecessor was the National Council of Trade Unions (NCTU), established in 1990 as an independent, democratically operated alternative to the Federation of Korean Trade Unions.
Following the 2016–17 South Korean protests (Candlelight Demonstrations), the KCTU has seen accelerated growth in union enrollment, reaching 1,134,056 members in 2020 and making it the second largest industrial union confederation in Korea.
After the liberation from Japanese rule in 1945, and Park Chung Hee's subsequent coup d'état in 1961, there existed only one legal trade union federation in Korea, the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU). Park's regime was truly authoritarian, and suppressed the activities of all political and business leaders it deemed corrupt. Park restructured the unions, permitting only those he and his regime regarded as "loyal" to their cause.
As a result, for almost two decades under the military regime of President Park, the FKTU was substantially weakened and subordinated to the repressive state, as well as the family-owned conglomerates or Chaebol, which dominated and monopolized the industries in South Korea and expanded incessantly with government help. As a result, the labor movement became very fragmented. It continued to operate through localized unions, such as the miners, textile workers, anti-government activists, and various Catholic groups.
By the 1990s, with the demise of the military regimes, the Chaebol groups began to reassert themselves with the introduction of automation production processes, decentralized factory location of production sites, and began to relocate production to overseas, which worsened the situation for organised labour.
To sever the relationship from the FKTU, whom many regarded as a government proxy for their subordination to the military regimes, various national federations of the chaebol-based unions emerged, including the Kia and Hyundai Group, as well as regional unions, such as the Masan and Changwon Unions Association. In the public sector, the National Teachers Union was formed in 1989, to counter the perceived authoritarian nature of education in Korea.
However, many trade unions felt the need to consolidate and overcome the fractured nature of the trade unions at the national level. As a result, they formed a national organization, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) in 1995. Subsequently, their membership increased from 861 unions and 391 000 members in December 1995 to 896 unions and 490,000 members in December 1996. The KCTU had become a formidable force, regarding themselves as an indispensable "check" to the power of the state, employers, and the FKTU.
Despite the internal struggles and factionalism of KCTU, their methods were nonetheless highly effective. In the early 1990s, there was a shift from domestic growth to national competitiveness: one of the major economic policies of Korea became "growth first, and distribution later." The KCTU regarded this as detrimental to the interests of the workers, and adopted the counter-policy of "strike first, bargain later." Korean workers used strikes as a weapon to seek political change, better working conditions, and for higher wages.
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Korean Confederation of Trade Unions
The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), literally translated as National Confederation of Democratic Trade Unions, also known as Minju-nochong (Korean: 민주노총; an acronym for "KCTU" in Korean), is a national trade union centre in South Korea officially established in 1995. Its predecessor was the National Council of Trade Unions (NCTU), established in 1990 as an independent, democratically operated alternative to the Federation of Korean Trade Unions.
Following the 2016–17 South Korean protests (Candlelight Demonstrations), the KCTU has seen accelerated growth in union enrollment, reaching 1,134,056 members in 2020 and making it the second largest industrial union confederation in Korea.
After the liberation from Japanese rule in 1945, and Park Chung Hee's subsequent coup d'état in 1961, there existed only one legal trade union federation in Korea, the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU). Park's regime was truly authoritarian, and suppressed the activities of all political and business leaders it deemed corrupt. Park restructured the unions, permitting only those he and his regime regarded as "loyal" to their cause.
As a result, for almost two decades under the military regime of President Park, the FKTU was substantially weakened and subordinated to the repressive state, as well as the family-owned conglomerates or Chaebol, which dominated and monopolized the industries in South Korea and expanded incessantly with government help. As a result, the labor movement became very fragmented. It continued to operate through localized unions, such as the miners, textile workers, anti-government activists, and various Catholic groups.
By the 1990s, with the demise of the military regimes, the Chaebol groups began to reassert themselves with the introduction of automation production processes, decentralized factory location of production sites, and began to relocate production to overseas, which worsened the situation for organised labour.
To sever the relationship from the FKTU, whom many regarded as a government proxy for their subordination to the military regimes, various national federations of the chaebol-based unions emerged, including the Kia and Hyundai Group, as well as regional unions, such as the Masan and Changwon Unions Association. In the public sector, the National Teachers Union was formed in 1989, to counter the perceived authoritarian nature of education in Korea.
However, many trade unions felt the need to consolidate and overcome the fractured nature of the trade unions at the national level. As a result, they formed a national organization, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) in 1995. Subsequently, their membership increased from 861 unions and 391 000 members in December 1995 to 896 unions and 490,000 members in December 1996. The KCTU had become a formidable force, regarding themselves as an indispensable "check" to the power of the state, employers, and the FKTU.
Despite the internal struggles and factionalism of KCTU, their methods were nonetheless highly effective. In the early 1990s, there was a shift from domestic growth to national competitiveness: one of the major economic policies of Korea became "growth first, and distribution later." The KCTU regarded this as detrimental to the interests of the workers, and adopted the counter-policy of "strike first, bargain later." Korean workers used strikes as a weapon to seek political change, better working conditions, and for higher wages.