POSCO workers stage 2nd partial strike over wage demands
Unionized workers at South Korean steelmaker POSCO began a second partial strike Wednesday after failing to narrow differences with management in wage negotiations. The 120-hour walkout began at 7 a.m. at POSCO's steel plants in Pohang and Gwangyang in southern South Korea, the union said. "We will call off the strike before the end of the five-day walkout if the company comes up with an acceptable proposal," union spokesperson Yi Jae-hyuk said by phone. POSCO has about 17,000 employees, including around 10,100 union members. The strike follows a 48-hour walkout that began at 7 a.m. last Wednesday and involved 120 workers, marking the first strike by POSCO workers since the company was founded in 1968. The union said the second strike would cause inevitable disruptions as about twice as many workers are participating compared with the first strike. POSCO said, however, that there would be no major disruption to plant operations, with about 60 workers each from its Pohang and Gwangyang plants expected to join the strike. The union has demanded a 7.1 percent increase in base pay, a performanc
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