The 11th meeting of the Minimum Wage Commission, which discusses next year's minimum wage level, was held at the Government Sejong Center on the 9th.
The Minimum Wage Commission held its 11th meeting at noon that day. The previous day's 10th meeting, which began at 3 p.m., could not narrow the differences between labor and management for over 8 hours, leading to a change to the next meeting after midnight.
However, the meeting ended around 12:48 p.m. Considering that it was adjourned immediately after convening, there was essentially no substantial discussion.
Labor representatives reportedly objected to the 'deliberation facilitation zone' proposed by the public interest members of the Minimum Wage Commission.
Ryu Gi-seop, Secretary-General of the Korean Federation of Trade Unions, expressed disappointment after the meeting, stating, "I am very disappointed," and noted that "we may express regrets during the process depending on the situation and public opinion." Lee Ji-sun, Vice-Chairperson of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), said, "We have continuously demanded the withdrawal of the deliberation facilitation zone and still hold the same view," adding, "We will fight until the end."
The day before, public interest members asked labor and management to submit a revised proposal within the range of '10,210 to 10,440 won' to determine next year's minimum wage. The amounts proposed by the public interest members represent an increase of 1.8-4.1% compared to this year's minimum wage of 10,030 won.
This increase rate is lower than the increase rates of the first year of minimum wage hikes under recent governments. In the first year of Roh Moo-hyun's administration, the minimum wage increase rate was 10.3%. The rates were 6.1% under Lee Myung-bak, 7.2% under Park Geun-hye, 16.4% under Moon Jae-in, and 5% under Yoon Suk-yeol.
A Minimum Wage Commission official stated, "We will strive to reach a consensus by accepting the revised proposals from labor and management at the upcoming 12th plenary meeting," adding that "if an agreement is not reached, we plan to conclude the meeting through voting or other methods."