Labor adjudicator says 'yellow envelope law' is about dialogue, not direct hiring

Korea’s top labor adjudicator has clarified that the new “yellow envelope law” is designed to compel parent companies and subcontracted workers to engage in dialogue, not to automatically guarantee or require higher wages or direct employment. Park Su-ken, chairperson of the National Labor Relations Commission, made the clarification on Monday as fresh data show a rapid rise in disputes over whether large companies qualify as “employers” for workers formally hired by subcontractors. “It only grants them the status to sit down and talk. It does not mean they must raise wages or directly hire the workers,” Park told reporters. “Many companies seem to be refusing to engage because they worry, once employer status is recognized, they will be dragged into liability for illegal dispatch, demands for wage hikes or direct employment — but those fears are misplaced.” Data compiled by the commission and the Ministry of Employment and Labor showed that, as of Friday, subcontractor unions at 1,012 workplaces, representing about 147,000 workers, have demanded talks with 372 princ

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