Seoul Metro unions strike wage deal with management, withdraw strike plan
Published: 12 Dec. 2025, 08:49
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- KIM JU-YEON
- [email protected]
![Kim Tae-gyun, head of the Seoul Metro chapter of the Korean Public Service and Transport Workers’ Union, left, and Han Young-hee, acting CEO and head of planning at Seoul Metro, pose for a photo after signing a wage and collective bargaining agreement at the company’s headquarters in Seongdong District, Seoul, on Dec. 12. [SEOUL METRO]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/12/12/21757edf-fbd4-4ea0-8eb1-0c3c1a41aa27.jpg)
Kim Tae-gyun, head of the Seoul Metro chapter of the Korean Public Service and Transport Workers’ Union, left, and Han Young-hee, acting CEO and head of planning at Seoul Metro, pose for a photo after signing a wage and collective bargaining agreement at the company’s headquarters in Seongdong District, Seoul, on Dec. 12. [SEOUL METRO]
Two out of three labor unions of Seoul Metro, the operator of subway lines No. 1 through 8, decided Friday to withdraw their plan to launch an all-out strike after reaching a last-minute wage deal with the Seoul subway operator, officials said.
Unionized workers had planned to launch a strike starting with the first train on Friday, brewing concerns about disruptions to commuters, but they rescinded their plan after striking a deal with Seoul Metro early in the morning, according to sources.
Under the wage deal, the management agreed to hire 820 new employees to fill vacancies created by retirements and to raise workers' wages by at least 3 percent in line with wage guidelines for public institutions.
The remaining labor union is also expected to reach a wage deal with the metro operator.
![Passengers board and leave a subway train at Seoul Station on Dec. 11. [YONHAP]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2025/12/12/adf6644d-f635-4b26-b11b-07ecdfb90f90.jpg)
Passengers board and leave a subway train at Seoul Station on Dec. 11. [YONHAP]
The two sides' negotiations came to a dramatic close after talks dragged on for 18 hours from 1 p.m. on Thursday.
The Seoul Metro union affiliated with the Korean Public Service and Transport Workers’ Union under the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, the largest of Seoul Metro’s three unions, declared the talks broken at 3 a.m. on Friday.
The union had convened an emergency strike committee and instructed members to begin a strike with the first trains on Friday if the talks failed to produce results, with a rally to begin the strike scheduled for 10:30 a.m.
Seoul Metro put out a revised offer before the all-out strike could happen.
BY KIM JU-YEON, YONHAP [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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