Members of the Korean Metal Workers' Union hold a press conference outside the National Labor Relations Commission at Government Complex Sejong on Monday, ahead of the first hearing in the retrial of the case over Hyundai Motor's employer status regarding subcontracted workers. [Yonhap]
Members of the Korean Metal Workers' Union hold a press conference outside the National Labor Relations Commission at Government Complex Sejong on Monday, ahead of the first hearing in the retrial of the case over Hyundai Motor's employer status regarding subcontracted workers. [Yonhap]

The National Labor Relations Commission is set to issue a ruling Friday on whether Hyundai Motor qualifies as an "employer" under the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act with respect to workers employed by its in-house subcontractors.

The central question is how much control a primary contractor must exercise over the working conditions of subcontracted workers — whom it does not directly employ — before it can be deemed an employer under the law. The case is expected to serve as a key precedent for defining the scope of primary contractors' bargaining obligations ahead of the implementation of the so-called Yellow Envelope Act.

According to labor circles Tuesday, the commission is scheduled to hold a second hearing Friday in the case concerning Hyundai Motor's employer status over subcontracted workers. The commission held its first hearing Monday and is expected to reach a determination after the second session.

The retrial was triggered after the Ulsan Regional Labor Relations Commission issued a split ruling — recognizing Hyundai Motor's employer status for some job categories but not others — prompting both labor and management to file for review.

The Ulsan commission recognized Hyundai Motor as an employer with respect to canteen and security workers employed by in-house subcontractors. It declined, however, to extend that status to "car masters" — sales representatives at Hyundai Motor dealerships.

The scope of bargainable issues was also narrowly defined. The Ulsan commission excluded matters such as production plans from the bargaining agenda, ruling that the primary contractor's obligation to bargain extended only to issues directly related to subcontracted workers' working conditions, such as medical rooms and rest areas.

At the heart of the dispute is how far employer status can be extended to a primary contractor that has no direct employment contract with subcontracted workers. Hyundai Motor maintains that because it has no direct employment relationship with those workers, and because key conditions such as wages and personnel decisions are determined by the subcontracting firms, it cannot be held to a bargaining obligation.

The union, by contrast, argues that the focus should be on whether the primary contractor effectively controls and determines subcontracted workers' conditions in practice, rather than on the formal employment contract. Because Hyundai Motor's influence extends to how work is performed and the working environment, the union contends that employer status should be recognized broadly.

The commission's ruling carries added significance given that it comes as labor-management disputes over primary contractors' employer status are intensifying ahead of the Yellow Envelope Act's implementation. The amended labor law expanded the definition of "employer" to include any party in a position to "substantially and specifically control and determine" workers' conditions, even without being a party to the employment contract.

As a result, the extent to which primary contractors in subcontracting arrangements are obligated to bargain has emerged as one of the most pressing issues on the industrial front. Employer status determinations may vary even among workers connected to the same primary contractor, depending on their job category, the nature of their work and the degree to which the primary contractor is involved in setting their conditions.

In separate cases Monday, the commission upheld the initial rulings in retrials involving Korea University Medical Center, Hangang EMP and Inje hagwon (Paik Chung-ang Medical Center).

Whether the commission on Friday upholds the Ulsan commission's findings or redraws the boundaries of employer status and bargainable issues in the Hyundai Motor case is expected to become a key benchmark for primary-subcontractor bargaining relationships going forward.


fact0514@heraldcorp.com