'Yellow envelope law for one month' Quiet delivery company... The reason why conflict only increased in CU

Initial response is mixed due to lack of government guidance... Only CUs with different structures have greater burden
 

After the implementation of the Yellow Bag Act, the conflict between BGF Retail and the Korea Freight Forwarders Association emerged as a major issue in the distribution industry. The industry is paying attention to the fact that differences in each company's response method in the early stages of implementation, rather than the law itself, contributed to the size and aspect of the conflict. Unlike the delivery industry as a whole, which attempted to manage the situation through procedural responses, some analyzes say that BGF Retail's business structure and initial response choices ultimately increased the management burden.

According to the distribution industry and labor circles on the 24th, BGF Logis, a logistics subsidiary of BGF Retail, began working-level negotiations with Korea Freight Workers' Solidarity on the 22nd. It has been 43 days since the implementation of the Yellow Bag Act. This is in contrast to the fact that many of the major companies in the industry that received requests for negotiation began response procedures within the first 10 days or so of the law's enforcement. Coupang Logistics Service (CLS) announced its request for negotiation on March 10, the day the law went into effect. CJ Logistics posted factual notices on the 17th, Lotte Global Logistics and Rosen Express on the 18th, and Hanjin Express on the 19th.

The actions of these companies are interpreted as a strategic choice to manage conflicts within the institutional system, independent of legal judgment. However, there are differing interpretations among practitioners regarding the legal meaning of the factual announcement. Ryu Soon-geon, a labor attorney representing Leein Labor Law Firm, explained, "From the employer's perspective, posting a factual notice can serve as evidence that the union has been recognized as a bargaining target. As of now, there are no specific guidelines from the government, so companies will have no choice but to be cautious about whether or not to post a factual notice." He then advised, “If the main contractor does not respond to the request for negotiation, the union can file an appeal with the Labor Relations Commission and receive a decision.”

Bang In-tae, lawyer at Daeryun Law Firm, said, “The factual announcement of the negotiation request itself is nothing more than the implementation of statutory procedures, so it is difficult to view it as a direct recognition of userness.” He added, “In the end, the key is how dependent the worker is on the side claiming to be the employer to provide labor,” adding, “If the contract structure focuses on working conditions and processes rather than outcomes, there is a high possibility that an obligation to negotiate will arise regardless of the government’s interpretation, so it is necessary to check the contract in advance.”

It is also pointed out that policy uncertainty influenced corporate decisions. Immediately after the enforcement of the law, Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon drew a line saying that this cargo solidarity issue was not subject to application, but after the fatal accident occurred, he readjusted his existing position, citing the absence of a communication channel. Minister Kim said, “The primary agency that must engage in negotiations with cargo drivers is BGF Retail, the CU operator,” and also interpreted the cargo union that did not report the establishment of a union, saying, “Even if they are self-employed in form, if they are subordinate in substance, they can be considered workers.”

The National Labor Relations Commission announced that it would prepare guidelines for judging usability at the time of enforcement of the law, but no practical standards have been presented to date. In the industry, it is assessed that many companies do not fully understand the yellow envelope law and are having difficulty coming up with a response strategy in the absence of clear guidelines. An industry insider said, “Many companies lack understanding of the yellow envelope law,” and “They are unable to come up with a clear response plan and are only waiting for government guidance and closely watching the market situation.”

In the academic world, citing the words of a legal professor, "There are opinions that the implementation of the revised law is premature," and "the implementation of the law was rushed ahead at a stage when specific guidelines or judgment standards were not yet mature, leading to confusion in the field."

BGF Retail chose to wait for the National Labor Relations Commission's judgment based on the government's initial interpretation of the law, but as the conflict continued, the management burden increased. Some see this issue as an example of increased costs due to the delay in choosing the timing of negotiations, rather than a negotiation that was impossible from the beginning, given that negotiations were eventually concluded. As logistics work has been vertically integrated through BGF Logis, this incident is expected to serve as an opportunity to expand the discussion surrounding the actual scope of influence and responsibility of the main contractor to the distribution industry as a whole.

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'Yellow envelope law for one month' Quiet delivery company... The reason why conflict only increased in CU (Shortcut)