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Photo courtesy of Yonhap News |
[Alpha Biz= Paul Lee] A labor dialogue body led by the Democratic Party of Korea has failed to reach agreement on key issues concerning early-morning delivery workers, raising the likelihood of legislative intervention.
According to political and labor sources, the third round of the delivery social dialogue held its eighth meeting on April 7 but was unable to resolve differences over weekly working hour limits and social insurance contributions.
The Democratic Party had proposed a compromise to cap night delivery workers’ weekly hours at 48, with two mandatory rest days after five consecutive working days. Labor groups, including the Federation of Korean Trade Unions and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, agreed to the proposal.
However, major platform companies such as Coupang and Kurly opposed the measure, arguing that limiting working hours below 50 per week would be difficult to sustain operationally.
Disputes also resurfaced over social insurance contributions. Coupang Logistics Service had previously agreed to fully cover such costs but is now reported to have reversed its stance.
Despite the deadlock on core issues, the parties agreed on several measures, including the adoption of a five-day workweek, the exclusion of sorting tasks from delivery workers’ duties (with compensation if unavoidable), and protections against penalties for delayed deliveries. Mandatory health checkups for night workers were also included.
The dialogue aimed to incorporate platform companies that were excluded from earlier agreements in 2021, but the failure to reach consensus on key issues has raised concerns that the outcome may be limited.
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport will compile the results and submit them to the National Assembly, with further discussions scheduled for April 21. As consensus remains elusive, lawmakers are increasingly considering legislation to address working hours and social insurance issues.
AlphaBIZ Paul Lee(hoondork1977@alphabiz.co.kr)
