InterLEX provides advisory and litigation services to employers on the full spectrum of labour and employment matters, including individual employment issues (which is primarily governed by the Labor Standards Act) and collective labour relations issues (which is primarily regulated by the Union Act) in Korea.

Employment issues include determining the nature of employment relationships (regular or irregular (fixed-term, part-time, dispatching, subcontracting)), formation of company policies, determining wages, advising on working hours, creating policies for the prevention of workplace harassment and sexual harassment, as well as advising on disciplinary actions, including termination.

Collective labour relation issues include advising on collective bargaining and labour-management councils, ensuring not only legal compliance, but also providing practical guidance to our clients to promote positive and productive labour management relations.

Our team is composed of partners with extensive experience from the most prominent law firms and global enterprises, and we pride ourselves on being regularly ranked as the premier Labour & Employment Boutique Law Firm in Korea by leading legal media.

The most complex matter may be termination of employment. At-will employment is not permitted in Korea. Unilateral termination by employers requires just cause, and employees may claim reinstatement of employment in the event of wrongful termination through the Labor Relations Commission, a forum that tends to be more pro-employee than judicial courts.

We assist our clients on both individual separations and workforce reductions for managerial reasons through analyzing termination options and developing communication strategies to avoid any unnecessary disputes.

As many companies are now attempting to downsize or restructure, there are many inquiries regarding legitimate methods of terminating employment.

Termination for managerial reasons has strict legal requirements under the Labor Standards Act, and we have many successful cases in defending counter-litigation.

Encouraging voluntary resignation prior to any dispute is a common tactic, but a careful approach is necessary when designing the appropriate strategy. We have successfully secured separation agreements with a considerable number of employees after guiding our clients step-by-step with our expertise.

We deal with many cases of alleged workplace harassment and discrimination. There are several steps that employers must legally take to deal with any allegation. Our firm assists with conducting internal investigations, providing relevant notices, producing findings, forming and guiding disciplinary committees, and all other steps in the process of ensuring that allegations of discrimination and harassment are resolved, protecting both our clients and their employees. We also provide advice on appropriate company policies, communication with employees and ensuring proper channels are in place to report and deter any form of discrimination and persecution.

Since corporate clients prefer to avoid any conflict with labour unions, those without unions pay careful attention to their employees before any union is established. Since it is of utmost importance to avoid any unfair labour practices incident, which entails criminal punishment, we actively advise and educate how to communicate with the employees to avoid any misunderstanding, utilizing existing channels of communication. A particularly important channel is the Labor Management Council, which – mandatorily – must be established under the Korean law after the company employs 30 or more.

For those clients with existing labour unions, we support communication strategies and actively engage in the negotiation of the collective bargaining agreements, preventing our clients from losing managerial rights as a result of the negotiation process.

We primarily deal with Korean law and regulations. However, through partnership with other law firms, we often must cooperate and deal with issues involving multiple regulations and jurisdictions.

The Korean Assembly Panel has deferred the controversial “Yellow Envelope Bill” (the bill is named after an incident where a group of citizens raised funds to help workers pay large damages imposed on them during labour strikes, placing the money in a yellow envelope). The bill seeks to limit the compensation that companies can demand from workers and labour unions during strikes and industrial actions.

The main opposition Democratic Party and labour community have supported the bill, while the government, the ruling People Power Party and business groups have opposed it, arguing that the bill would encourage illegal strikes.

Last year, the National Assembly had passed a similar bill; however, President Yoon Suk Yeol vetoed it.

Further, a company that is not party to an employment agreement is to be deemed an employer during a collective bargaining negotiation – if it substantially controls and determines the working conditions of workers, such as the employees of subcontractors.

Cases with conflicting opinions of the lower court on the above issues – regarding the definition of “employer” under the Union Act regarding the scope of unfair labour practice – are pending in the Supreme Court for a final decision.