Majority of Foreign Firms View South Korean Labor Market as ‘Confrontational’

Seoul: Over half of foreign-invested companies in South Korea view the local labor market as confrontational, with just 7 percent perceiving the labor relationship favorably, a poll showed Sunday. In the survey conducted by the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) on 439 foreign-invested firms in the country with more than 100 employees, 57 percent expressed that they viewed the labor-management relations in South Korea as confrontational. According to Yonhap News Agency, when foreign firms were asked to rate the labor market in other countries while supposing South Korea stood at 100, the United States recorded the highest with 122, followed by Germany at 120.8, Japan at 115, and China at 83.8. On the rigidity of the South Korean labor market, 64 percent viewed the local market as rigid, with only 2 percent considering it flexible. Eight out of ten foreign companies indicated they regarded the labor-management relationships and labor regulations as important factors when formulating medium- and long-term business plans. Respondents identified "political strikes" as the most urgent issue needing attention among common practices carried out by South Korean labor unions. "South Korea's confrontational labor relations and rigid regulations in the labor market are severely burdening the personnel operation of foreign firms, thereby devaluing the attractiveness of the market," an FKI official stated.