SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s federalgovernment released an order Tuesday for some of the thousands of truck chauffeurs who haveactually been on strike to return to work, firmlyinsisting that their acrossthecountry walkout over freight fare problems is harming an currently weak economy.
Despite dealingwith the danger of delicensing or even jail terms, the strike’s organizers stated they would defy the order and implicated President Yoon Suk Yeol’s conservative federalgovernment of reducing their labor rights and overlooking what they explained as gettingworse work conditions and monetary pressure triggered by increasing fuel expenses and interest rates.
The order was authorized in a Cabinet conference called by Yoon and targeted about 2,500 chauffeurs of cement trucks amongst a morecomprehensive group of truckers takingpart in the walkout. It significant the veryfirst time a South Korean federalgovernment hasactually workedout questionable powers under a law modified in 2004 to force truckers back to their tasks.
A failure to comply without “justifiable factor” is punishable by up to 3 years in prison or a optimum fine of 30 million won ($22,400). Critics have knocked the law as unconstitutional, stating it doesn’t plainly specify what certifies as appropriate conditions for a strike.
The strike’s damage so far hasactually been mostly restricted to domestic markets such as building and there haveactually been no reports of significant disturbances of secret exports such as computersystem chips and cars.
Yoon stated the truckers’ strike is threatening to “devastate the structure of our markets,” mentioning hold-ups in shipment of products such as cement and steel to building websites and factories. He implicated the strikers of illegal activities such as interferingwith the wo