Minimum wage talks break down

Labor and management failed to agree on the minimum wage level for next year in their last-minute talks by the legal deadline on Thursday.

The two sides came up with compromise proposals at the sixth meeting of Minimum Wage Council but failed to narrow differences, officials said.

The 27-member panel consists of the same numbers of union, business and public interest representatives.

When the negotiations began in April, labor unions demanded a 21.6 percent increase to 5,910 won ($5.18) per hour while the Korea Employer’s Federation called for a freeze. The current rate is 4,860 won.

The union delegates revised their proposal to 19.1 percent and 5,790 won and their counterparts suggested a slight increase to 4,910 won.

The two sides refused to budge during the last meeting before the deadline of Thursday midnight.

Unions pointed out that Korea’s minimum wage was 37 percent of the average salary, far below the 50 percent recommended by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development.

Businesses countered that for the past 13 years the minimum wage had increased at twice the rate of consumer price inflation.

The commission is slated to meet next Thursday, when the public interest groups are expected to present a compromise.

But the prospects of an early resolution are dim as labor and management are at loggerheads over a range of contentious issues including an “ordinary wage” system and government plans to increase the number of part-time jobs.
By Suk Gee-hyun (monicasuk@heraldcorp.com)