Ssangyong Motor's management and labor union agreed to return laid-off workers, who went on paid leave after being reinstated last year due to financial difficulties, to work. It has been 11 years and about 4,000 days since the April 2009 layoff.
The labor union and management of Ssangyong Motor announced on Feb. 24 that they have agreed to deploy laid-off workers who have been on paid leave since last year as of May 1.
Ssangyong decided to reinstate laid-off workers last year, but it had failed to immediately let them return to work immediately at a time when it was pushing for high-intensity management reform measures.
The management and labor union agreed on a plan to reform their management, including the suspension and reduction of welfare in September last year, and have implemented a "sabbatical year" system for employees to return wages and bonuses in December.
Those who were reinstated also changed to the status of paid leave (payment for 70 percent of ordinary wages).
The agreement is meaningful in which Ssangyong Motor's labor and management have concluded a social agreement despite tough conditions in the overall auto industry, including the supply and demand problem of parts caused by the new coronavirus infection.
"We plan to seek ways to improve our financial structure and improve our own management in order to actively respond to changes in the market, as well as to cooperate with various stakeholders to secure future competitiveness," a Ssangyong official said.
"We will step up efforts to secure product competitiveness and increase sales in order to strengthen win-win labor-management relations and achieve the common goal of stabilizing the company's growth and employment," he added.
