South Korea’s bank workers to hold strike

Employees at a major South Korean bank are set to hold a strike on January 8.

This will be the first time in 19 years that employees of KB Kookmin Bank are going on strike.

More than 6,000 members of staff, who are also part of a 12,000 strong labour union,  are protesting the management’s offer for this year’s bonuses and wage payment.

The last time labour union members held a strike was in 2000, with respect to the bank’s acquisition of the Housing and Commercial Bank.

The labour union and management have recently clashed over wage payment systems and the quantum of employee bonuses.

The country’s National Labour Relations Commission attempted to arbitrate the dispute, but to no avail.