Organized on August 29, 1999, the Korean Women's Trade Union (KWTU) was created to protect the rights of women workers to work and their entitlements to nondiscriminatory working conditions and benefits. Due to the widely enforced practices of "firing women first" during mass lay-offs and the conversion of their status from full-time to part-time, many women workers have been victimized by their companies, the government and the male-dominated trade unions. The KWTU was thus formed to illuminate and overturn the unjust policies and actions enacted against women workers. Currently, the KWTU has 1,500 union members who are involved in the activities of local units of nine major cities including, Seoul, Inchon, Pusan, Kwanju, Buchon, Ansan-Shuheung, Masan-Cangwon, Iksan-Chonju and Taegu. Protecting the rights of many women workers who are often denied membership in other trade union, the KWTU offers membership to all women workers working in any workplace or region. In fact, 71.8 percent of KWTU's membership consists of irregular women workers (Choi, 2000; Song, 2001).
This paper has several objectives. First, the underlying reasons for the formation of the KWTU will be presented. Essentially, the discussion will describe the growing number of women workers in the workforce, their deteriorating work conditions, along with the implementation of discriminatory actions targeting women workers. Issues such as the gender differentials in pay, the patriarchal oppression of women workers and the negative impact of the IMF reforms will be raised. Second, the history of the establishment of the KWTU will be presented. This section illustrates the impetus underlying the founders' decision to create the union. Finally, this paper will explore the KWTU's impact on the economic and social aspects of the lives of the women workers.
In order to understand the significance and the impetus underlying the formation of KWTU, it is im...