Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon stated that the ministry is "reviewing enforcement ordinances, enforcement rules, and other measures from various angles" to establish criteria for the "scope of labor disputes" under the Yellow Envelope Bill (revised Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act).

Minister Kim made the remarks during a plenary session of the National Assembly's Climate, Energy, Environment and Labor Committee today (the 12th), in response to a question from People Power Party lawmaker Na Kyung-won, who asked, "Regarding the Yellow Envelope Bill, President Lee Jae-myung also pointed out that it seems ambiguous and told you to change the subordinate statutes. Have you decided to create subordinate statutes?"

Kim explained, "We reported during our work briefing that we would handle this through guidelines, but the President gave a repeated directive during the Cabinet meeting the previous day. We are examining various methods from multiple angles, including enforcement ordinances and enforcement rules."

He added, "We initially thought that operational guidelines would be sufficient to resolve the ambiguity, but the President instructed us to review more concrete institutionalization rather than just guidelines."

In response, lawmaker Na pointed out, "The Yellow Envelope Bill itself consists of ambiguous regulations, and the definition of employer status must also be clarified. Since the law lacks specific delegation provisions, attempting to address this through subordinate statutes could lead to unconstitutionality controversies."

Regarding the relaxation of the 52-hour workweek for the Honam Semiconductor Mega Special Zone, Minister Kim dismissed the matter, stating that no government policy has been finalized yet.

When lawmaker Na asked, "Is it the government's stance to exempt research positions from the 52-hour workweek in the mega special zone?", Minister Kim replied, "Nothing has been decided by the government yet."

Furthermore, Minister Kim stated that he will simultaneously contemplate solutions to protect workers and enhance corporate productivity.

Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Kim Tae-sun said, "I hope the mega special zone serves as an opportunity to revive the local economy and create good jobs for workers," to which Minister Kim responded, "There is no disagreement that the mega special zone must succeed."

Minister Kim emphasized, "I will ponder solutions that can both protect workers and raise corporate productivity. While communicating with the labor sector, I will also communicate sufficiently with businesses to understand their demands and ultimately contribute to national development."
 
(Photo: Yonhap News)