Seoul bus strike begins

City buses are parked at a public bus garage in Seoul on Monday. (Yonhap)

The Seoul City Bus Workers Union has commenced an all-day strike from 4:00 a.m. Tuesday, following a breakdown in wage negotiations with management, raising concerns about transportation disruptions for city commuters as approximately 7,000 buses operating across 394 routes are now halted.

Negotiations between the union, part of the National Automobile Workers Federation, and the Seoul Bus Transportation Business Association failed to reach an agreement after over ten hours of discussions, which concluded at 1:30 a.m. that same day.

Key points of contention included ordinary wages, with management proposing to include bonuses in the base salary while offering a wage increase of over 10 percent.

The union countered with demands for a 3 percent increase, an extension of the retirement age to 65, and the elimination of salary discrimination, leading to an impasse.

In response to the union's strike, the Seoul city government has implemented emergency transportation measures starting from the first bus, deploying alternative transport options immediately.

The subway will extend service during peak hours by an hour and will operate late-night trains until 2 a.m.

To minimize inconvenience for commuters, free shuttle buses will be introduced in 25 districts to connect key locations with subway stations. Information about the shuttle bus services can be found on the Seoul City Hall website.

The city has also requested public institutions and private businesses to adjust work hours by one hour during the strike to help distribute travel demand.

Real-time transportation updates are being provided through various channels, including a citizen call center, traffic information center, the city website, social media accounts, roadside displays and bus information terminals.