Topic: International Labor Standards
Country: South Korea
Delegate Name: Parker Hughes
School: Forest Hills Central High School
Topic page: background guide and all position papers All South Korea position papers GLIMUN 2009 committees
The Republic of Korea has average working conditions compared to many of its surrounding countries in South-east Asia. Although problems still linger with the lack of human resources such as sexism, abuse, and accidents
Prohibitons in the constitution of South Korea are fair and recgonized in other countries. Child labor is prohibited, but children can work under the age of 18 under certain conditions. To do so, children must have a certificate from the Labor Ministry, which is rarley issued until the age of 14. They must also have a wrriten approval from their guardian. There are several laws concerning child labor and they are usually enforced, but due to lack of human resources regular inspections are not done. Ths causes many accidents and rates still continue to rise.
The 1987 Equal Employment Act provides for the equality of men and women in the workplace. Despite this improvement women are still being physcially and sexually abused. The government has passed laws to punish the abusers, but abuses have stil continued. We realize that this is an enormous problem and would like to try to prevent abuses forever.
South Korea joined the International Labor Organization (ILO) in 1991, but has not yet ratified the ILO conventions on Workers Rights (agreements on the freedom of association, on the right to organize and collective bargaining, and on the right of public-service employees to organize). The Republic of Korea allows employees to associate freely, excluding public sector employees.The constitution and the Trade Union Law provide for the right of workers to collective bargaining and collective action. Workers also have the right to strike, but strikes in government agencies, state-run enterprises, and defense industries are prohibited.
South Korea is also known for its relatively low wages, causing workers to move to other countries. The 3-Ds(dirty, dangerous, difficult) is also causing civilians to move. Our recent conversion from an agricultural economy to an industrialize economy has left our human resource inexperienced and dependent on dangerous jobs. Higher education on the jobs will help combat the problem, but the government is too focused on economy.
