Seoul bus services to resume Thursday morning after labor, management reach deal

City bus services in Seoul will resume Thursday morning after labor and management reached a compromise in wage negotiations late Wednesday, bringing an end to the capital’s longest bus strike.

City buses sit idle at a depot in Eunpyeong District, northern Seoul, on Jan. 14, the second day of the city's bus operators' strike. [YONHAP]

City bus services in Seoul will resume Thursday morning after labor and management reached a compromise in wage negotiations late Wednesday, bringing an end to the capital’s longest bus strike.

Representatives of the bus workers’ union and management resumed talks at 3 p.m. Wednesday and concluded them at 11:55 p.m., sources said. The agreement followed the collapse of earlier negotiations on Monday, when more than 10 hours of discussions failed to produce a deal.

The strike, which began at 4 a.m. Tuesday, disrupted commuting hours in a city where millions of residents rely on public transportation. On Wednesday morning, only 562 of the city’s 7,018 buses, or 8 percent, were in operation.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the two sides accepted a proposal from the Seoul Regional Labor Relations Commission during the second round of negotiations on Wednesday. The agreement includes a 2.9 percent wage increase and an extension of the retirement age.

The raise is higher than the initial mediation proposal of 0.5 percent but slightly below the 3 percent sought by the union.

Under the agreement, the retirement age will be raised from the current 63 to 64 starting in July and to 65 in July 2027, reflecting the union’s demand through a phased increase.

With bus services returning to normal, the city government said it would lift emergency transportation measures. Subway operating hours that had been extended during the strike will return to their regular schedule, and shuttle buses operated by district offices will be withdrawn.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]