Knowledge · HR & Labor

Industrial Action · Strikes

Industrial Action & Strike

📂HR & Labor⏱2 min read📊Advanced🔗6 related

What is industrial action?

In one line
Actions by a labor union that disrupt normal operations to press its demands. They are protected only if the purpose, the party, the procedure, and the means are all legitimate.
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⚡ Summary in 3 lines
  • Requires a legitimate party, purpose, procedure, and means
  • Watch the limits on replacement labor and the ban on retaliation
  • Plan a response that also considers the relationship after the dispute ends

Once industrial action begins, the usual instructions and discipline a company relies on stop working all at once. Even the same absence or the same refusal to work cannot lead to discipline or damages if it is legitimate industrial action. So in practice, the first thing that changes is not the union but what on-site managers say and do. In many cases, a single remark, such as a team leader pulling a union member aside and saying 'You stay out of it,' was found to be employer interference.

Each type is judged by different criteria. A strike is a full refusal to work, while a slowdown means working at reduced efficiency, which makes it the hardest type for calculating wage deductions. Workplace occupation also splits: a partial occupation where operations continue is assessed differently from a full, exclusive occupation that blocks entry and operations. On procedure, the numbers are clear. A majority of union members must approve in a direct, secret ballot, and the Labor Relations Commission mediation period is 10 days for general businesses and 15 days for public-interest businesses. The restriction on replacement labor also has limits: new hiring or subcontracting of outside workers unrelated to the business is barred, but reassigning non-union employees within the business is not prohibited. For essential public-interest businesses, separate essential-services agreements and a set proportion of replacement labor are allowed.

The most common misconception is that 'no work, no pay means you just deduct for the time not worked, and that's it.' Disputes arise over how to prorate monthly salaries, and over how to treat paid holidays that fall within the strike period and regular bonuses. A miscalculation of a few tens of thousands of won per person, across 300 employees, turns straight into a collective wage lawsuit. Another is the assumption that 'if the strike is illegal, we can settle it with damages claims and provisional attachments.' Even if you win in court, the workplace remains. If participation is reflected in performance reviews after the return, or union members get pushed out of overtime and shift assignments, that itself becomes a new unfair labor practice case, and a dispute you thought was over goes into round two. Judgments differ from case to case, so review your policy with an expert before finalizing it.

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💡 In plain English
It is like a stoppage in a game. A stoppage under the rules carries no penalty, but if the procedure is broken, both sides get penalized.
Why it matters in practice
When a dispute starts, it can seem that only the legal response is left, but you will keep working with the same people after it ends. That should shape how you respond.
Origin and sources

The Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act defines industrial action and its procedures, grants civil and criminal immunity for legitimate industrial action, and restricts replacement labor during a dispute. The requirements for legitimacy have been made concrete through case law.

Sources · Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act and case law on the legitimacy of industrial action
An example

Consider a hypothetical case. Company A makes auto parts, with 320 employees and annual revenue of KRW 64 billion (≈ US$47,882,700). Wage and collective bargaining talks broke down in the seventh round and mediation ended. After a union member vote with 78% in favor, a partial strike was announced for two weeks later. The company had faced an unfair labor practice complaint over managers' remarks during a strike two years earlier, so the head of management support set one rule: 'This time, let's manage what we say first.'

  1. The labor relations manager first gathered the mediation termination notice, the vote announcement, and the record of the 78% approval rate, then built the response plan on the assumption that 'this industrial action is procedurally valid.'
  2. They decided to keep only 1 of the 3 production lines running and, instead of hiring externally, moved 11 non-union section chiefs in through an internal reassignment, avoiding any dispute over replacement labor.
  3. He gathered 24 floor managers for two hours, made clear that remarks like 'Come back and I'll rate you well' or 'You stay out of it' are unfair labor practices the moment they are said, and handed out a list of prohibited remarks.
  4. The payroll manager worked with a labor law firm to recalculate the deductions on an hourly-wage basis and, before the strike began, corrected an over-deduction of KRW 42,000 (≈ US$31) per person on average in the draft.
  5. Negotiations resumed on day 6 of the partial strike, and a deal was reached after 9 days. There were 0 unfair labor practice complaints, and only 2 employees left voluntarily in the 3 months after the return to work. The union chair said, 'This time there were no hard feelings.'
Related terms
Collective BargainingThe process in which a labor union and an employer negotiate working conditions and related matters. The employer may not refuse or stall negotiations without justifiable cause.Labor UnionAn organization formed voluntarily by workers to maintain and improve working conditions and raise their status, operating under the three labor rights guaranteed by the Constitution.Unfair Labor PracticeEmployer conduct that interferes with workers exercising their three labor rights. Legally prohibited acts include retaliatory treatment, yellow-dog contracts, refusal to bargain collectively, and domination of or interference in a union.Labor Relations Commission · Remedy ApplicationA quasi-judicial administrative body that mediates and adjudicates labor disputes. It handles remedy applications for unfair dismissal and unfair labor practices, and mediation of labor disputes.Collective AgreementA written agreement between a labor union and an employer reflecting the outcome of collective bargaining. On working conditions, it takes precedence over work rules and individual employment contracts.Yellow Envelope Act · Amended Trade Union Act Articles 2 and 3The name given to the amendments that broaden the definitions of employer and worker in Article 2 of the Trade Union Act and limit damages claims over industrial action in Article 3. The core effect is to widen the path for subcontractor and partner-company workers to bargain with the principal contractor, and to restrict large damages claims over strikes.
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Last updated 13 Sep 2026 · Reviewed by John Kim

FAQ

The no-work, no-pay principle generally applies, but disputes arise over the scope of deductions and how each item is calculated. It must be calculated precisely under the law and case law.
The law restricts the use of replacement labor for the struck work during a dispute, and separate rules apply depending on the type of business. Violations can lead to sanctions.
Treating an employee unfavorably for taking part in legitimate industrial action constitutes an unfair labor practice. Individual unlawful acts, such as violence or damage to facilities, are judged separately.
Ultimately it is decided by the Labor Relations Commission and the courts. The requirements are complex, so it is safer to work with an expert from the earliest response.