The labor union of Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering (DSME) is considering withdrawing from the Korean Metal Workers’ Federation (KMWF) amid intensifying labor-labor conflicts due to a prolonged strike by unionized workers at subcontractors in Geoje, Tongyeong, and Goseong.

The DSME branch of the KMWF said on July 13 that it has received a request from its members to convene a general meeting to discuss a withdrawal from the KMWF and switching to a corporate labor union.

The request was backed by about 1,970 members, who accounted for 41 percent of all the 4,720 members. They argued that there is no need to remain affiliated with the KMWF because the federation failed to play a role in resolving the strike by the unionized workers at subcontractors.

The DSME branch has to hold a general meeting of its members within seven days to hold a vote on the proposed change in its organizational form. If a majority of the registered workers vote and more than two-thirds of them approve the proposal, the branch will withdraw from the federation. If the withdrawal is finalized, the branch will become a corporate union again in about four years after joining the federation.

The chairman of the DSME branch urged an end to the dock occupation by the unionized workers at subcontractors by July 12 in a July 11 statement, but they rejected it.

Source: BusinessKorea