Railroad strike in Korea has ended after four days. The Korean Railroad Workers’ Union concluded a four-day general strike on Monday morning. However, they mentioned the potential for a second general strike, but didn’t specify when it might occur.
The Korean Railroad Workers’ Union has internally planned a second general strike. However, the decision to proceed with it and the schedule will depend on the Land Ministry’s response, according to Baek Nam-hee, the union’s media communication chief. The timing of the second strike is a concern, especially due to the Chuseok holiday, but Baek criticized the Land Ministry for not actively communicating with the union and for unilaterally reducing the SRT service linking Suseo and Busan, which initially led to the strike.
The union went on strike to demand full implementation of a four-group, two-shift schedule and the expansion of public railroad services. They want this schedule, which offers more days off and avoids consecutive night shifts, to be properly established after four years of trial. Their demand for public railroad services expansion includes adding a Busan to Seoul route for KTX, reducing fare gaps between KTX and SRT, and integrating Korea Railroad Corp. and SR.
