For the first time in Korea, an online-based labor union has been established. The online platform has been created to make it easier for small and medium-sized businesses and irregular workers to join the union and participate in activities beyond the workplace fence.

The Workplace Gapjil (Abuse) 119 online union revealed on November 4 that it held its launching ceremony online on the 3rd.The online union received a labor union establishment report certificate from the Ministry of Employment and Labor on October 31, gaining union status under the Labor Union Act. The union currently has about 100 members.

The online union is an attempt to change the reality that it is difficult for workers to join a union unless they work in large organizations such as the public sector and large companies. Korea's unionization rate is 13.1 percent as of 2022, with only 1.3 percent in workplaces with fewer than 100 employees (0.1 percent in workplaces with fewer than 30 employees). It's not uncommon for some workers in small workplaces to try to organize a union but are unable to do so because they do not have a certain number of members.

Online unions recognize this reality and lower the threshold for union membership. Anyone can join anonymously to avoid disadvantages from the company. Union fees are over 5,000 won per month, which is less burdensome than existing unions. People who have left their jobs or are looking for a job, as well as special employment and platform workers who are not recognized as workers under the Labor Standards Act, can join, and activities are mainly taking place in online cafes. Members can also receive professional labor counseling from Labor Rights Group, Workplace Gapjil 119 activists, labor lawyers, and lawyers.

Online unions are also an attempt to overcome the limitations of company-specific unions, which tend to focus on issues inside the corporate fence, such as wage increases and welfare. The online union is the first super-corporate union that allows individual workers to join the union and then form industry branches when they reach a certain size (30 members).

Currently, there are two industry branches under the umbrella of the online union: the Social Welfare Branch and the Korean Language Teachers Branch. The union plans to create additional industry branches in hospitals, information technology (IT), small and medium-sized financial institutions, daycare centers, lecturers, and trainers.

Park Sung-woo, chairperson of the online union, said, “The online union is based on industries and occupations, not individual companies. We will negotiate with employers' organizations and the government to improve the treatment of workers across industries and occupations,” said Park.

The launch of the online union is a “new challenge” for Workplace Gapjil 119, which has been providing free labor counseling to workers and campaigning for legal and institutional improvements since November 2017. “After seven years of counseling, we decided that the problem of workplace bullying is best improved through unions, not individuals, so we promoted 'industry-specific unions' and created an online union after seven years,” it said.

Through surveys and collecting opinions from members, the online union will conduct campaigns centered on agendas that resonate with workers, such as 'clocking out on time,' 'no contact after work,' annual leave entitlement,' 'improving the culture of staff dinner,' 'prohibiting derogatory remarks,' and 'writing an employment contract instead of a freelance contract.