SEOUL – When South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s Cabinet picks were unveiled on June 23 afternoon, Mr Kim Young-hoon was in the driver’s seat — literally.
The 57-year-old train driver, who was operating a train between Gimcheon and Busan with his phone turned off, says he did not learn of his historic nomination to the Cabinet until an hour after the news broke. Only after completing his shift and stepping off the train in Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang Province, did Mr Kim hear from colleagues that he had been tapped to be South Korea’s next labour minister, he told Yonhap.
The nomination marks a milestone: Mr Kim is set to become the country’s first blue-collar worker to head the Ministry of Employment and Labour. His selection by the liberal president has drawn both praise and scepticism, highlighting the growing debate over labour representation at the top levels of policymaking.
Mr Kim has a decade of experience in labour activism, including leading the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) from 2010 to 2012, during the administration of former President Lee Myung-bak, a conservative businessman-turned-politician.
The KCTU is the largest labour group in South Korea, representing some 1.2 million workers. Known for its combative stance, it has frequently clashed with conservative governments, staging nationwide strikes and sit-in protests over labour rights and policy disputes. Some of its strikes in the past had involved violence.
Mr Kim, has to go through a confirmation hearing, is the first-ever KCTU member nominated for the role of labour minister. Since the Ministry of Employment and Labour was established in 2010, labour ministers have typically chosen from among government officials, administrators, professors and legislators.
The public reaction to Mr Kim’s nomination was mixed, ranging from online congratulations to deep distrust regarding his KCTU, blue-collar background.
On a local radio show on June 24, Mr Jang Seong-cheol, a political commentator and a former aide to the conservative People Power Party, questioned whether Mr Kim could manage his administrative duties effectively.
“Managing the administrative affairs in a ministry is a serious responsibility. And there’s a real risk of being surrounded and swayed by bureaucrats,” Mr Jang said.
“And if Mr Kim strongly believes the Labour Ministry should be more pro-labour and focused on creating policies favourable to workers, he might appoint those who fully share his vision. But this could lead to serious conflict between the minister’s office and the ministry itself,” he added.
Representative Song Eon-seog, floor leader of the main opposition People Power Party, criticised Mr Kim’s nomination, warning that it signals the start of the KCTU’s political agenda seeping into government policy.
The presidential office said that Mr Kim was nominated as a figure who has represented workers.
“We expect him to play a key role in strengthening the rights of working people by working (on) different issues such as industrial accidents, the ‘Yellow Envelope Law’ and a 4½-day workweek system,” said Mr Kang Hoon-sik, the chief of staff to the president, in a briefing on June 23.
On June 23, the KCTU and the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU), South Korea’s other major labour group, lambasted the Labour Ministry for failing to represent the voices of workers, fuelling conflict, and turning a blind eye to widespread discrimination in the workplace.
“Lee’s government must abandon the Yoon Suk Yeol administration’s anti-labour policies and pursue a major shift in state affairs to guarantee labour rights. The union expects the labour minister nominee to fully recognise the pressing tasks of our time and to faithfully fulfil his duties as the Labour Minister in guaranteeing workers’ rights,” the KCTU said in an official statement.
The FKTU urged Mr Kim not to rely on political parties’ stances, economic reasoning or bureaucratic minds. It expressed its hopes for the labour minister nominee to pursue meaningful progress through social dialogue and build consensus between workers, management and government. THE KOREA HERALD/ ASIA NEWS NETWORK
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