Trade unions in South Korea

The Ministry of Labor announced on 19 September 2008 that as of December 2007, 10.8% of workers were in trade unions in South Korea, a 0.5% increase from 10.3% in 2006. Korea’s unionization rate peaked in 1989 at 19.8% and fell to 10% 2004.

There are two national trade union centres in South Korea: the Federation of Korean Trade Unions (FKTU) and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU). In 2007, the FKTU had 740,308 members (43.9% of trade unionists in Korea), the KCTU had 682,418 members (40.4%), and 265,056 workers were members of independent trade unions affiliated to neither national centre.