SEOUL, NOV 22 – Seoul Metro, the operator of subway services for lines 1 to 8 in Seoul, South Korea, announced today that 27 of its trains were delayed by more than 20 minutes the previous day, which was the second day of a slow strike by its workers, reports news agency Yonhap.
Of the 3,189 underground trains that operated yesterday, the punctuality rate was 99.1 percent, according to the operator while explaining that the current law defines a late train as one that is delayed by more than 20 minutes.
Compared to the first day of the ‘work according to the rules’ protest by the trade union, the number of late trains decreased by 98, while the punctuality rate increased by 3.1 percent, he said.
The largest of the three labor unions in Seoul Metro is threatening to launch a general strike on December 6 if their demands for higher wages and hiring are not met.
The planned strike, along with threatened strikes by unionized KTX workers and regular train operator KORAIL, is expected to cause major disruption to rail services across the country early next month.
The Korean Railway Workers’ Union also threatened to launch an unlimited general strike starting December 5 to demand higher wages and increased manpower. – Named
