Text Fwd: UAW takes a stand against unfair treatment of Hyundai workers in South Korea 미 자동차 노조 연합 노동자들, 남한의 부당한 현대 노동자 처분에 반대해 연대

* Image source: same as the link

'Korean autoworkers rally for their rights.'

* Image source: same as the link

Police use pepper spray against Korean autoworkers.

_______________________________________________________________

* Text thankfully forwarded by Steve Zeltzer and then Lotus Fong during Dec. 5 to 6, 2010


United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW)
전미 자동차, 우주 항공 그리고 농업 이행 노동자들 연합(UAW)
UAW takes a stand against unfair treatment of Hyundai workers in South Korea
12/03/10

Frustrated by their temporary status, auto workers at a Hyundai Motor Co.mpany plant in Ulsan, South Korea, declared a strike on Nov. 15, and one desperate worker set himself on fire in protest of the company’s refusal to offer secure jobs. About 500 workers have since led an occupation of various plants in the Hyundai compound.

Plagued by unfair dismissals and miserably low wages, precarious workers, known in the United States as temporary or contract workers, are shutting down assembly lines to voice their discontent. The occupation of auto plants has resulted in company losses totaling $173 million as of Dec. 1. Mainly affected is production of the recently unveiled Hyundai Accent. Countless pre-orders on this new sub-compact vehicle have now been left unfilled.

The cost of Hyundai’s refusal to negotiate with striking workers increases exponentially every day. The estimated$225 million that a concession in this particular case would cost is not much more than the toll the work stoppage has taken so far, but the automaker is doubtlessly interested in longer term outcomes.

Hyundai is the fastest-growing company in the auto industry, and that means it’s quickly becoming a force to reckon with for companies like Toyota which is notorious for keeping temporary workers on low wages for years and dismissing them with ease.

To anyone interested in workplace fairness, the resolution of the Ulsan Hyundai workers’ strike is critical. It could either speed up progress toward ensuring global living wages, or provide a green light on the race to the bottom the auto industry began years ago – — with Toyota and Hyundai getting a head start.

READ MORE

_______________________________________________________________

* See also FireDog Lake
UAW To Support NAFTA-Style Korea Free Trade, Sells Out Taxpayers Who Bailed Them Out
By: Jane Hamsher Friday December 3, 2010 8:25 pm

(* Text thankfully forwarded by Lee Jesse C. on Dec. 3 and Steve Zeltzer and then Lotus Fong during Dec. 5 to 6, 2010)

_______________________________________________________________

* Related blog

Sunday, December 5, 2010
Text Fwd: 12/6 Ann Arbor UAW demonstration organized by in support of striking precarious workers at Hyundai plant in Korea
미국 미시간 노동자들, 현대 파업 노동자들 지지

Monday, December 6, 2010
Text Fwd: KORUS FTA concessions part of MB’s U.S.-centered strategy, analysts say
분석가들은 한미 FTA가 이명박 정부의 미중심 전략에 부분적으로 양보했다고 말함