Korea Labor Foundation holds 7th Workplace Innovation Case-Sharing Forum
Bexco overhauls wage structure, consolidates grievance channels — HR fairness satisfaction up 7.6%
Lotte Aluminium launches labor-management future forum; CMWorld revamps HR and compensation systems
Bexco, a Busan-based exhibition and convention company, resolved a dispute over ordinary wages through labor-management negotiations and restructured its pay system. Lotte Aluminium established a joint labor-management vision amid a business restructuring, while CMWorld, a small software firm, overhauled its human resources and compensation systems through its labor-management council.
The Korea Labor Foundation said Thursday it held the 7th Workplace Innovation Case-Sharing Forum at the Severance Hospital building at Yonsei University in Jung-gu, Seoul, under the theme "Conditions for the Future Workplace, Labor-Management Coexistence: Building Labor-Management Partnerships for Corporate Coexistence and Leap Forward."
The forum was organized to share workplace innovation consulting cases carried out by the Korea Mutual Growth Support Association. It featured examples from companies of different industries, sizes and union status that improved their wage structures and organizational operations through labor-management cooperation.
For Bexco, the Supreme Court's 2024 ruling on ordinary wages brought the question of whether fixed allowances should be included in ordinary wage calculations to the fore. Through consulting, labor and management established a joint vision and restructured the pay system to incorporate allowances into ordinary wages while keeping total annual salaries unchanged.
A joint subcommittee with equal representation from labor and management — including rank-and-file employees — was also set up. Through this body, four job assignment options were developed for employees subject to the wage-peak system, and previously scattered grievance-filing channels were consolidated into one. Three related company regulations were also enacted or revised.
As a result, employee satisfaction with HR fairness rose from 3.4 points in 2024 to 3.66 points in 2025, a gain of 7.6 percent. Awareness of the grievance-handling system also climbed from 88 percent to 100 percent over the same period.
Lotte Aluminium moved to build a labor-management cooperation framework after a physical spin-off tied to its 2024 business restructuring sharply reduced its workforce. Through participatory workshops, labor and management selected trust, communication, sustainability and employee well-being as four core values and established a shared vision.
Of particular note was the launch of a joint consultative body called the "Labor-Management Future Forum," through which the union and management work together to respond to changes in the business environment. The company is now rolling out a labor-management cooperation program in stages based on this framework.
CMWorld, a 3D spatial information software company, represents a case of building a labor-management council structure in step with the company's growth. When its regular workforce exceeded 30 employees at the end of 2023, establishing a labor-management council became a pressing task.
In 2024, CMWorld used consulting to put in place procedures for electing worker representatives, draft council bylaws and set up a grievance-handling system. Last year, the company drew up job descriptions for four job categories and nine positions and reviewed its seniority-based wage management structure.
The labor-management council now operates as a standing communication channel, covering topics such as business performance, performance evaluations, incentives and flexible working hours. The company has also earned recognition as a family-friendly business and has been selected as a Seoul-type hidden champion and a youth employment hidden champion.
"Regardless of whether a union exists or how large a company is, the cases of these three firms show that the very process of labor and management defining problems together and working toward solutions is where coexistence begins," said Park Jong-pil, secretary-general of the Korea Labor Foundation. "We will continue to support the rooting of labor-management partnerships built on cooperation and trust across diverse workplaces."
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