SUWON — The Gyeonggi Regional Automobile Workers' Union, affiliated with the Federation of Korean Trade Unions' Korean Automobile and Transport Workers' Federation, said members voted 97.7% in favor of a strike in a ballot held on the 23rd.
The union warned that it will walk off the job starting with the first buses on the 30th if no agreement is reached in final mediation on the 29th.
Voting took place simultaneously at each workplace from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., according to the union. Of 9,420 union members at 29 bus companies in the province, 9,001, or 95.6%, cast ballots. There were 8,792 votes in favor and 209 against.
Whether the strike goes ahead hinges on labor dispute mediation at the Gyeonggi Regional Labor Relations Commission. The first mediation session was held at about 3 p.m. on the 23rd, and the final session is set for 3 p.m. on the 29th.
The union is demanding that employers honor an earlier agreement among labor, management and government to bring wages in line with those of Seoul bus drivers by Jan. 1, 2026. Citing the wage gap that has opened up in the wake of a recent Supreme Court ruling on ordinary wages for Seoul bus drivers, it is seeking pay increases of 21.56% on quasi-public routes and 30% on privately operated routes.
The union also called for shorter working hours. It said members work about 2,400 hours a year, or 1.4 times the national average, and demanded a 4.5-day workweek on quasi-public routes and a one-day cut in monthly working days on privately operated routes. It is also seeking a new paid bonus program for accident-free drivers and flu vaccinations for all members.
Employers, by contrast, are calling for a wage freeze on privately operated routes, citing a deterioration in Gyeonggi Province's finances. They have not presented a specific proposal for quasi-public routes.
The union declared talks broken off at a fifth round of central collective bargaining with employers on the 14th. It filed for labor dispute mediation with the Gyeonggi Regional Labor Relations Commission the same day. The commission's mediation period runs 15 days from the filing date and ends on the 29th.
If the strike goes ahead, 4,130 buses on 854 routes operated by 29 companies in cities including Suwon, Yongin, Goyang and Seongnam will come to a halt. That includes 942 buses on 63 express routes.