Bus strike in Seoul D-1

[Anchor]

The Seoul city bus union is in final negotiations with the management over wage increases and other issues.

If an agreement is not reached by tonight (Apr. 29), there will be disruptions starting from the first bus operation tomorrow (Apr. 30) morning.

We connect to our reporter at the negotiation site.

Reporter Kim Ha-eun, is the tug-of-war between labor and management intense?

How is the negotiation proceeding right now?

[Reporter]

The labor and management sides of the Seoul city bus are continuing their final negotiations since 5 PM today.

From the start of the negotiations, both sides have been engaged in a tense stand-off; let’s listen in for a moment.

[Park Jeom-gon/Chairman of the Seoul City Bus Labor Union: "There should be no lies or such things. I don’t know what will happen after midnight, but… we will see."]

[Kim Jeong-hwan/Chairman of the Seoul City Bus Transportation Association: "It is true that there are significant differences in opinions. However, we must avoid the worst-case scenario…"]

The union is demanding an increase in the base salary within the range of 8.2% and an extension of the current retirement age from 63 to 65, in line with bus companies in Gyeonggi Province.

The application scope of the ordinary wage, which changed due to a Supreme Court ruling last year, has also emerged as a new issue.

The union has drawn a line, stating that it is not a subject of this negotiation since a separate lawsuit is ongoing, but the management is countering that if the lawsuit and the labor negotiations are conducted separately, there is a concern about overlapping wage increases.

[Anchor]

If the negotiations fail today, will they immediately go on strike starting tomorrow?

[Reporter]

Yes, if an agreement is not reached by midnight tonight, there could be disruptions starting from the first bus operation tomorrow morning.

Whether it will be a full strike or a partial strike or a legal compliance protest will also depend on the negotiation outcome tonight.

The city of Seoul has prepared emergency transport measures.

During the rush hour, an additional 173 subway trains will be operated tomorrow.

The last subway train operation will also be extended until 2 AM the day after tomorrow (May 1).

Additionally, free shuttle buses connecting subway stations and major hubs will be deployed on 41 routes with over 120 buses to reduce inconvenience for citizens.

This has been Kim Ha-eun from KBS News at the Seoul Regional Labor Commission.