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A Korean court has again turned its back on the International Labour Organization's recommendations in its decision to remove the legal status of one of the country’s teachers’ unions.

“Allowing retired and dismissed workers as union members and leaders is internationally accepted. It is frustrating that the court decision isolates South Korea on the international scene,” said Education International General Secretary Fred van Leeuwen in response to the Seoul Administrative Court's ruling.

In the court's statement, it referred to the KTU as an illegitimate labour group because its “Membership of dismissed teachers undermines the independence and autonomy of a teachers' union, which eventually cripples school education and causes damage to students.”

President of the KTU, Kim Jeonghun, who began a hunger strike on the 9th of June to help influence the decision, said that the union will continue to fight.

KTU: appeal against wrong decision and on-going fight for quality education

“We will immediately file an appeal against the ruling and take other legal measures,” Jeonghun told Education International (EI), adding that it will embark on activities to change the law. “We have worked for the past 25 years to prevent the regression of education and will continue to do so.”

The Korean Teachers and Education Workers’ Union, which represents 60,000 members and was founded in 1989 and legalised in 1999, has strived to ensure that all the Korean students get quality education, and to bring social justice into Korean society, fighting against corrupted private school leaders, overly bureaucratic systems, and the cut-throat competition among students.

Jeonghun, undeterred, said that the “KTU will fight against the Government’s action, raising awareness among the public at home and internationally.” The union president also extended thanks to the union community, specifically mentioning EI, the International trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the Trade Union Advisory Committee to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the International Labour Organisation (ILO), and international colleagues who are highly supporting KTU.

The KTU’s next steps

Should the ruling of 19 June be upheld by the highest court, KTU would be prohibited from using the title “labour union” and engaging in legitimate negotiations with school authorities.

In October, KTU filed a lawsuit with the Seoul Administrative Court against a government decision to outlaw the KTU due to its repeated refusal to deny membership to fired teachers.

The Workers' Group of the ILO also adopted a statement saying that the Seoul government ignored the United Nations body's repeated recommendations to let the trade union make its own decision on whether to recognize membership of dismissed educators.

EI: international solidarity movement for respect of Korean teachers’ trade union rights

Van Leeuwen said EI was shocked by the stripping of the KTU’s legal status in October 2013 because it rejected the government’s ultimatum to revise the provision in its by-laws allowing dismissed and retired teachers into union membership.

Education International assured that it, along with its affiliates worldwide, will stand by the Korean teachers in the defence of their civil, political and union rights, and will stay firm in urging the Korean government to respect international labour standards.