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| Jong-won Yoon, head of Industrial Bank of Korea, has reached his second year in office. As the labor and management agreed at the time of inauguration of President Jong-won Yoon in January of last year, the industry believes that there is a high possibility of introducing the’union recommendation director system’ by IBK. /The Fact DB |
Labor unions promote the institutionalization of the union recommendation director system
[더팩트ㅣ정소양 기자] With IBK IBK President Yoon Jong-won’s second year of office in office, the industry is interested in whether IBK will introduce a union recommendation director system for the first time in the financial sector.
According to the financial sector on the 14th, the labor and management of IBK started a full-fledged discussion on the union recommendation director system with the aim of recommending candidates as early as next month.
While outside directors Kim Jung-hoon and Lee Seung-jae of IBK are nearing their term expiration in February and March, the main point of this negotiation is to fill at least one position with recommended personnel from the union.
The union recommendation director system is a system in which people recommended by the union are appointed as outside directors. It is called the transitional stage of the’labor director system’ in which workers participate as members of the board of directors.
The labor union has already raised the introduction of the union recommendation director system as an agenda at the labor-management council held at the end of last month to lay the foundation for discussions between labor and management. It is known that the IBK union is reviewing candidates through various measures such as public offering.
A union official explained, “It is not for the benefit of the union, but the purpose of promoting the union recommendation director system to protect consumers and strengthen the publicness of public financial institutions.”
In particular, the union plans to institutionalize the union recommendation director system by changing the articles of association. Even with the current IBK articles of association, union-recommended personnel can be nominated for outside directors, but the position is to clarify this.
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| Outside directors of IBK Kim Jung-hoon and Lee Seung-jae will expire in February and March, respectively. /The Fact DB |
In the financial sector, if the union recommendation director system is introduced, IBK is expected to be the first.
Until now, other financial companies have also tried to introduce the union recommendation director system, but the turn has failed. Beginning with KB Kookmin Bank in 2017, IBK, Korea Development Bank, and Export-Import Bank each year tried to place a person appointed by the union as an outside director, but all of them failed at the shareholders’ meeting. In the case of public financial institutions, it was not approved against the opposition of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance or the Financial Services Commission.
In addition, the promotion of the union recommendation director system was a matter agreed upon with the union at the time of the inauguration of IBK President Yoon Jong-won, and the industry saw that the possibility of introduction was high.
In January of last year, Chief Executive Jong-won Yoon agreed on a joint labor-management declaration stating that’I will promote the union recommendation director system through active consultation with related organizations’.
An official from a commercial bank said, “I know that IBK has a positive atmosphere as the labor-management agreement was reached.”
Some voices are concerned about the side effects of the introduction of the union recommendation director system.
It is argued that the competitiveness of banks may be lowered if there is a conflict with the management due to excessive labor union intervention.
A previous official said, “There is a claim that the union recommendation director system can prevent the organization’s negligent management, but there are also many negative views.” said.