A local court ruled Thursday that a progressive teachers' union cannot maintain its legal status as a legitimate trade union.
The Seoul Administrative Court rejected the union's demand to have the government's decision to outlaw the union canceled.
Last October, the Ministry of Employment and Labor stripped the union's 14-year-old legal status after it repeatedly refused to follow the government's order to deny membership of fired teachers.
The Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (KTU) then filed a lawsuit, arguing that the government decision runs against the spirit of a related law for ensuring independence of labor unions.
The 60,000-strong organization currently has as members 22 teachers who were sacked for signing statements against the former Lee Myung-bak government in 2009. (Yonhap)
