Plenary Results
Plenary passes four bills including amendment to the Broadcasting Act
- Feb 23, 2024
- 159
Plenary passes four bills including amendment to the Broadcasting Act
- Guarantees workers’ rights, including allowing indirectly employed workers to collectively bargain with their primary employer
- When liability for compensation for industrial action is recognized, the scope of responsibility is calculated for each person liable
for compensation and the identity guarantor is exempt from liability for compensation
- Expands the number of directors at terrestrial broadcasting businesses and forms a board of directors to reflect their expertise and
typicality of different fields
- Establishes a national recommendation committee for candidates for president of terrestrial broadcasting businesses, so that
people can directly recommend presidential candidates
- Impeachment bills reported against senior prosecutors Lee Jung-seob and Son Jun-sung and Korea Communications Commission
(KCC) Chairman Lee Dong-kwan
The National Assembly of the Republic of Korea (Speaker Kim Jin-pyo) passed a total of eight agenda items, including four bills, at its 11th plenary meeting of the 410th regular session, held on Nov. 9. The following are the major bills tabled for consideration:
<1> Amendment to the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act
The approved amendment allows a person who is in a position to substantially control and determine the working conditions of workers to be considered an employer even if the person is not a party to a labor contract. It guarantees workers’ rights (right of association, collective bargaining, and collective action) by allowing not only directly employed but also indirectly employed workers to engage in collective bargaining with the primary employer.
The scope of industrial disputes has been expanded to cover any controversy or difference that arises from disagreements between a trade union and an employer or employers’ association, with respect to matters relating to working conditions, such as unfair labor practices of an employer and non-implementation of a collective agreement, not only determination of employment terms and conditions such as wages, working hours, welfare policies, dismissal, and other actions.
In cases in which liability for damages due to industrial action, etc. has been acknowledged by the court, the scope of liability shall be determined individually for each compensation obligor based on the cause of responsibility and contribution. This is intended to prevent the court from imposing the entire amount of damages on each of all joint tort-feasors without specifically calculating the scope of responsibility for each. The guarantor is exempted from liability for damages arising from industrial action, etc.
<2> Amendments to the Broadcasting Act, the Foundation for Broadcast Culture Act, and the Korea Educational Broadcasting System Act
The amendments expand the number of directors at the Korea Broadcasting System (KBS), the Korea Broadcasting Culture Association (the largest shareholder of Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation, MBC), and the Korea Educational Broadcasting Corporation (EBS) to 21 at each. The authority to recommend directors has been given to a greater number of entities, including broadcasting and media-related academic societies and viewers’ committees.
In addition, a national recommendation committee for presidential candidates shall be established in order that the public may directly recommend a presidential candidate, and the board of directors may recommend the appointment of the president through such procedures as a special majority system and a runoff election.
<3> Resolution urging support for special research and development zones in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Daedeok Special R&D Zone
The adopted Resolution designates Nov. 20, when Daedeok was designated and promulgated as a Special R&D Zone, as the official opening date and calls for active legal and institutional support for special R&D zones throughout the country, in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Daedeok Special R&D Zone.
<4> Resolution confirming Korea’s territorial sovereignty over Dokdo and condemning Japan’s sovereignty claims over Dokdo and distortion of history in textbooks
The Resolution confirming Korea’s territorial sovereignty over Dokdo and condemning Japan’s claims of sovereignty over Dokdo and distortions of history in textbooks condemns Japan’s claim of sovereignty over Dokdo in official Japanese government documents and distortions of history in Japanese textbooks, while confirming the Republic of Korea’s territorial sovereignty over Dokdo.
