53rd Meeting - Precarious Labour in South Korea

Date: 10 September, 2021

Place: Zoom

Participants: Vivien, Faiz, Matthew, Aditi, Rocky & 100선생

<Summary by Matthew>

Matthew gave a brief talk about the history of the Korean working class. Faiz took us through a breakdown of the statistics around the high rate of workplace deaths in Korea. 백 선생님 also talked about the experiences of women factory workers during the 1970s, and connected them to the experiences of working class women in Korea today. In the discussion, we touched upon many issues including the responsibility of corporations for worker wellbeing, the impact of neoliberal reforms on industrial relations, and whether consumers could play a role in forcing companies to treat their workers fairly.