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andrenhowe
Joined: 21 Mar 2011
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 Posted: Wed May 29, 2013 7:32 pm Post subject: Labor Board |
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Has anyone experienced or heard of someone who has had a successful outcome when fighting a dodgy employer through the channels provided by the labor board?
I need to decide whether to take half what I'm owed, or risk getting nothing via complaints filed with the labor board. This particular hagwan corporation deserves to be found guilty of breaking labor laws, but I also deserve to get as much of what I'm owed as possible.
Do the hagwan corporations just buy the labor board people, or, is Korean labor law just for show, and not intended to be applied?
I keep running across the comment "the labor board is useless."
Any successes out there? |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Wed May 29, 2013 7:38 pm Post subject: Re: Labor Board |
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| andrenhowe wrote: |
Has anyone experienced or heard of someone who has had a successful outcome when fighting a dodgy employer through the channels provided by the labor board?
I need to decide whether to take half what I'm owed, or risk getting nothing via complaints filed with the labor board. This particular hagwan corporation deserves to be found guilty of breaking labor laws, but I also deserve to get as much of what I'm owed as possible.
Do the hagwan corporations just buy the labor board people, or, is Korean labor law just for show, and not intended to be applied?
I keep running across the comment "the labor board is useless."
Any successes out there? |
I personally know several hundred individuals who have taken on an employer via the labor board and won but it is a time consuming process.
If you want to just move on then take what you can and leave.
If you are remaining here for the duration then use the labor board. They are often lazy but if you are persistent (and have a translator to help you) you will likely prevail in the long run (6 months to a year).
When using the labor board be sure that you avoid extraneous issues not related directly (violations of law) to your complaint (which should be specific in terms of labor law violations).
If you get sidetracked on non (labor law) related issues you will lose.
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R. S. Refugee
Joined: 29 Sep 2004
Location: Shangra La, ROK
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| Posted: Wed May 29, 2013 8:00 pm Post subject: |
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I had one good experience with the Labor Board in Goyang-si wherein they quickly scheduled a hearing, listened to the employer's bs about why they didn't think they needed to pay my severance payment after my contract had been completed, told the miscreants that they were wrong and would have to pay up, and then gave them a short period of time to make the payment. I asked those Labor Ministry folks, "What if the miscreants fail to make the mandated payments to me?" They said "they'll pay or . . ." and just held their wrists together.
Then, they did indeed pay on time. So, if you're not leaving the country soon, you may have good success with the Labor Ministry. |
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andrenhowe
Joined: 21 Mar 2011
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| Posted: Wed May 29, 2013 8:33 pm Post subject: Labor Board |
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| So, I need to be in the country for the duration of the dispute - meaning I can't file tomorrow and soon leave the country, and manage the rest from my home country? |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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| Posted: Wed May 29, 2013 8:37 pm Post subject: |
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| You can appoint someone to appear on your behalf if you can't remain in country. There's a form for that at the Labor Board office and, if you're already out of the country, you can go to a Korean Consulate to complete the form there. |
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RangerMcGreggor
Joined: 12 Jan 2011
Location: Somewhere in Korea
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| Posted: Wed May 29, 2013 9:12 pm Post subject: |
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| My last employer refused to pay half of my final salary because I didn't send a "proper notice" (which I did). Labor Board knocked them down and made them send the money to me on the spot before they let me know. They even brought an English lawyer as well |
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Juregen
Joined: 30 May 2006
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| Posted: Wed May 29, 2013 9:19 pm Post subject: Re: Labor Board |
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| ttompatz wrote: |
If you are remaining here for the duration then use the labor board. They are often lazy but if you are persistent (and have a translator to help you) you will likely prevail in the long run (6 months to a year).
When using the labor board be sure that you avoid extraneous issues not related directly (violations of law) to your complaint (which should be specific in terms of labor law violations).
If you get sidetracked on non (labor law) related issues you will lose.
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Labor Board is not lazy, they have to give due course to the proceedings.
They go out of their way to make sure the process is followed to the letter. |
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andrenhowe
Joined: 21 Mar 2011
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| Posted: Wed May 29, 2013 10:44 pm Post subject: |
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| RangerMcGreggor wrote: |
| My last employer refused to pay half of my final salary because I didn't send a "proper notice" (which I did). Labor Board knocked them down and made them send the money to me on the spot before they let me know. They even brought an English lawyer as well |
That's really great. It's nice to hear the stories of people who were well-served by people who work within the labor/legal bureaucracy. And a good reminder of how for every bad story about being ripped off and lied toby creepy hagwans there's a story of people being gracious, generous, kind, helpful, efficient. I had an unbelievably easy time at immigration precisely because the guy was so cool and sympathetic. |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Wed May 29, 2013 11:55 pm Post subject: Re: Labor Board |
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| Juregen wrote: |
| ttompatz wrote: |
If you are remaining here for the duration then use the labor board. They are often lazy but if you are persistent (and have a translator to help you) you will likely prevail in the long run (6 months to a year).
When using the labor board be sure that you avoid extraneous issues not related directly (violations of law) to your complaint (which should be specific in terms of labor law violations).
If you get sidetracked on non (labor law) related issues you will lose.
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Labor Board is not lazy, they have to give due course to the proceedings.
They go out of their way to make sure the process is followed to the letter. |
Yes, and no.
Yes, if you specifically file and do the required paperwork they deal with it in due course (still not fast).
If you are looking for advice and just complain at the office without filing the paperwork, hoping it will get taken care of, it won't. You'll get brushed off and sent away. They usually won't insist that you do anything about it and if you don't have a translator you may just get sent away anyway so they don't have to deal with you.
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PatrickGHBusan
Joined: 24 Jun 2008
Location: Busan (1997-2008) Canada 2008 -
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| Posted: Thu May 30, 2013 5:05 am Post subject: |
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Well ttom doesn't that make basic sense for the LB?
I mean, they will work efficiently for people who bother to present an official and documented complaint but not wasted their limited time and resources on people who go fishing for advice or have no filed paperwork.
That sounds pretty logical to me for such an organization.
The translator issue is more problematic and a person should not be sent away if they do not have a translator but have all their documents in order for a formal complaint. That would be wrong. |
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