Korean banks to normalize business hours from Jan. 30 despite union opposition

Korean banks to normalize business hours from Jan. 30 despite union opposition [Photo by Park Hyung-ki]

Commercial banks in South Korea will normalize operation hours to pre-pandemic levels from Jan. 30 despite fierce opposition by union workers that have threatened to take legal action.

The Financial Industry Council, an organization under the Korea Federation of Banks (KFB), on Wednesday sent a notice to banks that work hours will normalize from Jan. 30 when the indoor mask mandate is lifted.

The notice came after the KFB held talks with the Korean Financial Industry Union (KFIU) over normalizing business hours that were reduced to 9:30 a.m to 3:30 p.m. from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. but they ended without fruit.

The KFIU issued a statement, saying that it had discussions about operation hours but they fell through as the management “argued to return to normal without conditions.” The union group threatened to actively consider filing civil lawsuits against each financial firm if work hours are restored.

The KFB and KFIU are at odds.

“We received legal advice from multiple law firms that business hours can be restored without a labor-management agreement,” said Kim Kwang-soo, chairman of the KFB. “There is no issue in normalizing operation hours on Jan. 30.”

Operation hours at savings banks, in the meantime, are also expected to return to normal once major lenders normalize theirs. Forty-one out of 79 savings banks have shortened their hours in 2021.