Lawmakers blast Hanjin Heavy chairman for mass layoffs

Ruling and opposition lawmakers blasted the chairman of Hanjin Heavy Industries & Construction (HHIC) at a parliamentary hearing on Thursday over a prolonged labor dispute at the shipbuilder triggered by massive layoffs. Hanjin Heavy has been under growing criticism over an eight-month-long labor conflict since it laid off more than 400 workers at a shipyard in the southern port city of Busan last December. They reached an agreement to go back to work in late June, but dozens of others refused to give up their protest. The ongoing labor dispute gathered particular attention from the public and media with a solo protest by one woman, Kim Jin-sook, a former Hanjin Heavy worker and local trade union member. Since January, Kim has been staging a sit-in from atop a 35-meter tower crane at the Yeongdo shipyard. In his first appearance at the parliamentary hearing, chairman Cho Nam-ho said the massive layoffs were "unavoidable" to cope with declining orders and soaring prices. Since 2009, the local shipyard has failed to earn any contracts. "The 2008 global financial crisis has dealt a serious blow to the Yeongdo shipyard due to its small size," Cho said. The layoffs "were inevitable considering the global shipbuilding industry," which prefers larger container ships. Democratic Party lawmaker Hong Young-pyo said company executives should take responsibility for the company's poor performance, not blame the sluggish economy. Asked how a new dockyard in the northern Philippine port of Subic Bay was able to draw 31 contracts, Cho said the spacious overseas shipyard was more preferred by clients as it can produce large ships at lower cost. Cho has faced accusations of moving jobs overseas at the expense of Korean workers. Rep. Son Bum-kyu of the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) accused Cho of ignoring his responsibility to resolve the labor dispute, referring to Cho's monthslong overseas stay, which was suspected as an attempt to wait out the situation from afar. Cho returned home earlier this month after about two months abroad. "Cho fled overseas to avoid the parliamentary hearing, and even since his return, he has not made efforts to resolve the labor disputes. As a result, Cho has made this situation into a political issue and created skepticism about capitalism," Son said. "This is an anti-social act that hampers social unity." The 60-year-old Cho apologized for "causing misunderstandings and concerns." The prolonged labor dispute has sparked public outcry in South Korea, where growing income disparity between the rich and poor is weighing on the Lee Myung-bak administration's business-friendly polices, which critics claim have only benefited big businesses. Thursday's hearing was the latest in a series of attacks against large conglomerates by politicians amid growing public perceptions that the benefits of growth in big businesses do not trickle down to the working class. In an earlier parliamentary hearing, lawmakers scolded Huh Chang-soo, the chairman of the nation's largest business lobbying group, for what they called conglomerates' greedy business practices.