[Statement ] Even if they arrest Yoon Seok-yeol,
if the special semiconductor law that takes the sacrifice of workers for granted is not repealed, the capitalist revolt will continue!
Scrap the Special Semiconductor Law and guarantee the labor rights of semiconductor workers!
Now that the situation is chaotic due to Yoon's martial law and arrest, capital and the government are trying to pass the Special Semiconductor Law. In a meeting with representatives of the Democratic Party of Korea, the acting president proposed to introduce special overtime (authorized overtime) as a way to exempt the semiconductor industry from the 52-hour weekly limit (including 12 hours of overtime). We are outraged by the acting minister's attempts to enforce the evil law, which was proposed by the rebellion-sympathizing Bareunmyo lawmakers, and we strongly condemn the Democratic Party for suggesting the possibility of negotiations.
The Semiconductor Special Law, which effectively nullifies the 52-hour workweek cap, is not limited to the semiconductor industry and undermines democracy by shortening working hours. SHARPS and other labor rights civil society organizations are demanding that the government immediately withdraw its promise to review the exemption from the 52-hour workweek and take the lead in protecting the rights of semiconductor workers.
The Special Semiconductor Law states. “Article 4 (Relationship with Other Laws) This Act shall take precedence over other laws in all matters relating to the enhancement of competitiveness, support, and deregulation of the semiconductor industry. However, if the application of other laws is favorable to the businesses operating in the semiconductor industry and the development of the semiconductor industry, such laws shall be applied.”
This provision only prioritizes the interests of capital, with no consideration for the lives and health rights of semiconductor workers and the natural environment and ecosystems destroyed by the industry. Moreover, there are serious concerns that the attempt to strengthen the privileges of capital beyond the 52-hour cap will also violate the right to work3. Moreover, the executive director of the Korea Semiconductor Industry Association said, “I would like to see semiconductor workers as soldiers in the defense industry, and I would like the state to create an environment for them to work more.” This is a disregard for the humanity and rights of semiconductor workers, as if they were soldiers mobilized under martial law.
On December 26, last year, in response to the National Assembly's discussion of the Semiconductor Special Law, the Korea Electronics Workers' Union issued a statement (December 25, 2024) titled “Semiconductor Special Law, Don't Sacrifice Workers”. In particular, it strongly criticized the proposal to exempt only certain semiconductor industries from the 52-hour workweek, saying that it treats workers in these industries as “expendable” and, above all, sacrifices workers' basic rights.
Many victims of occupational diseases have told SHARPS that they fell ill while working without knowing what chemicals they were using and without receiving proper safety training on how to protect themselves, yet the Vice President of Samsung Global Research called for the passage of the special law, saying, “The secret to Samsung's ability to catch up with the U.S. and Japan in the past was that we worked much more than them through timely investments, overtime, and weekend work.” We are outraged by capital's blatant statement that sacrificing workers is a way to gain competitiveness. It doesn't make sense that the government would step in and remove the cap on working hours when this is the reality.
In addition, the semiconductor industry employs a large number of women workers, who have been exposed to the risk of serious industrial accidents such as leukemia and cancer, as well as miscarriages, infertility, and childhood diseases caused by reproductive toxicity. At Samsung, a top-tier company, female workers have long complained of extreme pain due to long hours and overtime work. At Exit 10 of Gangnam Station, where the Women's Strike Organizing Committee held an open microphone on March 8, Woo Ha-kyung, a female delegate of the Samsung Electronics Workers' Union, and Jeong Hyang-sook, a victim of Samsung's occupational disease, testified to the pain faced by female workers. They complained of bent knuckles, herniated discs, miscarriages, infertility, panic disorder, and more, and how difficult it is for them to prove their illnesses due to chemical exposure to be recognized as occupational diseases. At a time when workers are saying they don't want to die, don't want to be sick, and don't want to be forced to make sacrifices, attempts to limit the application of maximum working hours are anachronistic, and the adverse impact these measures will have on the quality of life and health of semiconductor workers is extremely concerning.
We cannot continue to ignore the labor rights that the semiconductor industry has sacrificed, the falsity of its economic impact, and the social and ecological injustices it has created for its profits. Our future depends on labor rights, not the semiconductor industry. We are not only against Yoon Seok-yeol, but also against the patriarchal capitalist system he has been criticizing. Insurrection and insurrectionary sympathies are not only in politics. Even if Yoon Seok-yeol is arrested, if the Special Semiconductor Law, which takes workers' sacrifices for granted, is not repealed, capital's insurrection will continue.
Repeal the Special Semiconductor Law. Guarantee the rights of semiconductor workers. We will struggle for this to the end.
January 15, 2025
Supporters for Health and Rights of People in Semiconductor Industry (SHARPS)
[Statement ] Even if they arrest Yoon Seok-yeol,
if the special semiconductor law that takes the sacrifice of workers for granted is not repealed, the capitalist revolt will continue!
Scrap the Special Semiconductor Law and guarantee the labor rights of semiconductor workers!
Now that the situation is chaotic due to Yoon's martial law and arrest, capital and the government are trying to pass the Special Semiconductor Law. In a meeting with representatives of the Democratic Party of Korea, the acting president proposed to introduce special overtime (authorized overtime) as a way to exempt the semiconductor industry from the 52-hour weekly limit (including 12 hours of overtime). We are outraged by the acting minister's attempts to enforce the evil law, which was proposed by the rebellion-sympathizing Bareunmyo lawmakers, and we strongly condemn the Democratic Party for suggesting the possibility of negotiations.
The Semiconductor Special Law, which effectively nullifies the 52-hour workweek cap, is not limited to the semiconductor industry and undermines democracy by shortening working hours. SHARPS and other labor rights civil society organizations are demanding that the government immediately withdraw its promise to review the exemption from the 52-hour workweek and take the lead in protecting the rights of semiconductor workers.
The Special Semiconductor Law states. “Article 4 (Relationship with Other Laws) This Act shall take precedence over other laws in all matters relating to the enhancement of competitiveness, support, and deregulation of the semiconductor industry. However, if the application of other laws is favorable to the businesses operating in the semiconductor industry and the development of the semiconductor industry, such laws shall be applied.”
This provision only prioritizes the interests of capital, with no consideration for the lives and health rights of semiconductor workers and the natural environment and ecosystems destroyed by the industry. Moreover, there are serious concerns that the attempt to strengthen the privileges of capital beyond the 52-hour cap will also violate the right to work3. Moreover, the executive director of the Korea Semiconductor Industry Association said, “I would like to see semiconductor workers as soldiers in the defense industry, and I would like the state to create an environment for them to work more.” This is a disregard for the humanity and rights of semiconductor workers, as if they were soldiers mobilized under martial law.
On December 26, last year, in response to the National Assembly's discussion of the Semiconductor Special Law, the Korea Electronics Workers' Union issued a statement (December 25, 2024) titled “Semiconductor Special Law, Don't Sacrifice Workers”. In particular, it strongly criticized the proposal to exempt only certain semiconductor industries from the 52-hour workweek, saying that it treats workers in these industries as “expendable” and, above all, sacrifices workers' basic rights.
Many victims of occupational diseases have told SHARPS that they fell ill while working without knowing what chemicals they were using and without receiving proper safety training on how to protect themselves, yet the Vice President of Samsung Global Research called for the passage of the special law, saying, “The secret to Samsung's ability to catch up with the U.S. and Japan in the past was that we worked much more than them through timely investments, overtime, and weekend work.” We are outraged by capital's blatant statement that sacrificing workers is a way to gain competitiveness. It doesn't make sense that the government would step in and remove the cap on working hours when this is the reality.
In addition, the semiconductor industry employs a large number of women workers, who have been exposed to the risk of serious industrial accidents such as leukemia and cancer, as well as miscarriages, infertility, and childhood diseases caused by reproductive toxicity. At Samsung, a top-tier company, female workers have long complained of extreme pain due to long hours and overtime work. At Exit 10 of Gangnam Station, where the Women's Strike Organizing Committee held an open microphone on March 8, Woo Ha-kyung, a female delegate of the Samsung Electronics Workers' Union, and Jeong Hyang-sook, a victim of Samsung's occupational disease, testified to the pain faced by female workers. They complained of bent knuckles, herniated discs, miscarriages, infertility, panic disorder, and more, and how difficult it is for them to prove their illnesses due to chemical exposure to be recognized as occupational diseases. At a time when workers are saying they don't want to die, don't want to be sick, and don't want to be forced to make sacrifices, attempts to limit the application of maximum working hours are anachronistic, and the adverse impact these measures will have on the quality of life and health of semiconductor workers is extremely concerning.
We cannot continue to ignore the labor rights that the semiconductor industry has sacrificed, the falsity of its economic impact, and the social and ecological injustices it has created for its profits. Our future depends on labor rights, not the semiconductor industry. We are not only against Yoon Seok-yeol, but also against the patriarchal capitalist system he has been criticizing. Insurrection and insurrectionary sympathies are not only in politics. Even if Yoon Seok-yeol is arrested, if the Special Semiconductor Law, which takes workers' sacrifices for granted, is not repealed, capital's insurrection will continue.
Repeal the Special Semiconductor Law. Guarantee the rights of semiconductor workers. We will struggle for this to the end.
January 15, 2025
Supporters for Health and Rights of People in Semiconductor Industry (SHARPS)