President Roh Moo-hyun                                 
Office of President
Cheong Wa Dae (Blue House)
1 Sejong-no, Jongro-gu, Seoul
Republic of Korea
 
Dear President Roh:

As members of the international community, we stand united in support of the courageous struggle of the KTX Crew Workers’ Branch Union.  We condemn KORAIL’s unethical legal efforts to maintain the blatant gender discrimination and unfair labor practices in which the company has systematically engaged.  We urge KORAIL, the largest public sector enterprise in South Korea, to set an example by promoting global corporate responsibility and resolving the dispute immediately.

According to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea, KORAIL’s treatment of KTX female train attendants is a clear example of gender discrimination and a basic violation of human rights.  The National Human Rights Commission of Korea has also strongly recommended that striking KTX women workers be granted fair and just conditions of employment. We join with members of Korea’s academic community, legal community and broad sectors of civil society in demanding that KORAIL reinstate the striking workers as directly hired employees, and not as contingent workers contracted through a third party.

The refusal by KORAIL, the nation’s largest public enterprise and employer of over 30,000 people, to abide by fundamental principles of democracy and human rights violates international standards established by the UN International Labor Organization(ILO) as well as the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) to safeguard the rights of women workers. KORAIL’s actions also directly contradict the company’s own commitment to abide by the principles of the UN Global Compact.  KORAIL’s actions are not only indicative of the systemic discrimination faced by contingent workers in South Korea, but also contribute significantly to making South Korea one of the worst gender discrimination offenders in the world. South Korea ranks 29th among the 30 OECD countries and 53rd out of the 75 countries covered by the UNDP Human Development Report in terms of gender equality.  We can and need to do much, much better.

We urge you to end KORAIL’s discriminatory and unfair treatment of KTX women workers and reinstate them as direct employees. We urge KORAIL to comply with the recommendations of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea, follow the guidelines set by both the ILO and the CEDAW, and abide by the principles of the UN Global Compact, which KORAIL itself joined in May 2007.

Thank you for your consideration of this important issue.

Respectfully submitted,

[Name, Position, Affiliation*, Country]
*for identification purposes only

To sign petition, please email ktxworkers AT gmail.com