Expanded Union Rights 'Yellow Envelope Act', New Spark for Police and Courts

[Financial News] After a 6-month grace period, the so-called 'Yellow Envelope Act' (Amendment to Articles 2 and 3 of the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act) will be implemented from February next year, predicting significant impacts on both the field and the courts. If the scope of disputes is expanded and claims for damages are limited, there is a high possibility of increased strikes and assemblies. On the other hand, there are concerns that the burden on police response may increase. The legal community predicts that due to the ambiguity of the scope of employers and the criteria for damages, there will be a surge in lawsuits and constitutional controversies. Experts foresee, "With the strengthening of union rights, assemblies and demonstrations are bound to increase," and "The legal ambiguity will eventually lead to court disputes."
■If assemblies and demonstrations increase, police burden also rises
According to the political and legal circles on the 26th, the Yellow Envelope Act strengthens the responsibility of the main contractor for subcontracted workers, expands the scope of industrial actions, and limits corporate claims for damages against striking workers. As the negotiation targets increase and the burden decreases, unions can conduct assemblies and demonstrations more actively.
The problem is that the police burden may also increase accordingly. Typically, at large-scale assembly or demonstration sites, police riot squads are deployed to maintain order and prevent clashes. In the past, conscripted police officers (Uigyeong) supported many security sites along with the police riot squad, but since the abolition of the Uigyeong system in 2023, they are composed and operated only by professional police officers. It is known that the total number of police riot squads is currently around 12,000.
On the other hand, assemblies and demonstrations remain unchanged. In addition to regularly held events every year, political issues and one-off struggles are frequently held across the country, including Gwanghwamun. According to the National Police Agency, the number of assemblies and demonstrations where police forces were mobilized has exceeded 10,000 annually since 2021. It recorded 10,300 in 2021, 10,293 in 2022, 10,431 in 2023, and 10,287 in 2024. Especially this year, with the impeachment situation, large-scale assemblies and demonstrations have continued nationwide, and the issue of increased fatigue among police riot squads has been publicized.
Lee Woong-hyuk, a professor of police science at Konkuk University, said, "The Yellow Envelope Act is a matter to watch, but as union rights are strengthened, there is a possibility of increased assemblies and demonstrations," and "If public power is deployed on the scene and various incidents and accidents arising during the assembly process overlap, the fatigue and workload of the police riot squad will inevitably increase."
However, the police maintain that they will manage according to existing principles even if assemblies and demonstrations increase. A police official stated, "Even if assemblies and demonstrations increase due to the Yellow Envelope Act, nothing will change," and "Since the freedom of assembly and demonstration is guaranteed under the constitution, reported assemblies will be guaranteed as assemblies, and industrial actions will be guaranteed and managed as industrial actions."
■Ambiguous 'scope of employer' is a time bomb
The legal community is also closely monitoring the situation. Since there are ambiguous parts in the legal provisions, it is expected that many cases will eventually lead to court disputes.
The biggest issue is the 'scope of employer'. The amendment expands the scope of employers to 'those who can substantially and specifically dominate and decide on workers' working conditions even if they are not parties to the employment contract'. There is an unavoidable prospect of confusion over how to interpret 'substantial control'.
Especially in industries like automotive, shipbuilding, and steel, where hundreds of subcontractors are involved, there could be a series of lawsuits. If an employer does not respond to collective bargaining, there is a possibility of filing for unfair labor practice relief or an injunction for collective bargaining acceptance. Employers can also be subject to criminal punishment for unfair labor practices.
Cha Jin-ah, a professor at Korea University's School of Law, pointed out, "The amendment has infinitely expanded the scope to allow interpretation as an employer even in cases where it cannot be seen as an implied party to the employment contract," and "Not clearly defining who the employer is, which is a prerequisite for punishment, violates the principle of legality."
Park Chan-geun, a lawyer at Hwa Woo Law Firm, emphasized, "Since the law is not clear, it will eventually lead to disputes and be sorted out by court judgments," and "To increase predictability, the government should prepare clearer and more specific guidelines."
There is also a possibility that the Yellow Envelope Act will be judged by the Constitutional Court. The People Power Party and economic organizations are considering filing a constitutional complaint after the passage of the Yellow Envelope Act. If the Constitutional Court decides it is unconstitutional, the relevant legal provisions will lose their effect. If it is deemed unconstitutional, the matter will return to the National Assembly for amendment, prolonging confusion for both employers and workers.




jisseo@fnnews.com Seo Min-ji, Jang Yu-ha reporters