YOON&YANG

Employment & Labor

Overview

Yoon & Yang’s Employment & Labor Practice Group, which is comprised of employment lawyers, certified labor consultants, and foreign legal advisors, provides practical and detailed legal counsel on a wide range of legal issues that may occur in the area of employment and labor law. In addition to rendering effective advisory services on employment and labor issues, the Group also represents clients in negotiations to resolve labor disputes, and proceedings before the Labor Commission and courts.

In the past, companies were predominantly faced with relatively simple labor relations issues such as disciplinary measures, unemployment, and other related matters. Recently, however, labor issues have become more complex with legislative efforts to strengthen labor regulations and heighten penalties for unfair labor practices. Recent developments involving collective bargaining/unions, intra-company subcontracted workers or temporary workers, ordinary wages, and retirement policies have further complicated labor issues.

The Group has the expertise and capability to address increasingly intricate employment and labor issues. The highly accomplished professionals of the Group have extensive experience in employment and labor issues. The members of the Group include lawyers who have previously served as judges dedicated to labor law matters. Based on their expertise and experience, the members of the Group provide optimal solutions to employment and labor issues faced by clients. The members of the Group also frequently publish commentaries on employment and labor laws, and are active participants in shaping the country’s employment and labor law landscape.

Practices

Collective Labor Relations
• Counseling clients on issues involving unions’ activities, collective bargaining agreements, employment agreements, rules of employment, personnel policies, or disciplinary regulations
• Representing clients in negotiations or civil, criminal, and administrative litigations
• Counseling clients on issues involving sexual harassment in the workplace
• Counseling clients on issues involving labor-management councils
• Counseling and representation clients in labor disputes and unfair labor practices such as interference with labor union activities and unfair employment practices
• Counseling clients on issues involving unified labor unions

Individual Labor Relations
• Advisory services concerning employment contracts, service contracts, consulting contracts, termination contracts, non-competition contracts, and confidentiality contracts
• Advisory services concerning unfair labor practices such as wrongful termination, unjust wage or severance payment, and unjustified disciplinary actions
• General counseling concerning ordinary wage, severance payment, pensions, and other forms of payment
• Counseling regarding voluntary employee benefit programs including stock options and incentives
• Advisory services concerning privacy protection and protection of sensitive corporate information
• Advisory services concerning temporary employment contracts

Representation in Labor Disputes
• Representing clients in civil, criminal, and administrative proceedings involving labor issues
• Representing clients in cases involving claims that arise from changes to wage, retirement allowance, and average wage
• Representing clients in criminal cases regarding violation of the Labor Standards Act or the Labor Relations Adjustment Act

Labor Issues on Corporate Restructuring
• General counseling and legal representation concerning corporate internal restructuring and workforce reduction, including lay-offs, organizational, or personnel
• Counseling clients on processes for improving standards of low-achieving employees, and review of appropriateness for roles
• Counseling clients on overall relations including transfer of individual labor relations and collective labor relations originating from corporate establishment, M&A, corporate spin-offs and business transfer
• Counseling clients on optimal personnel management in workforce outsourcing, dispatching of workers, and related matters
• Counseling clients on the legality of employing temporary employees, fixed-term employees, and dispatch workers

Industrial Accidents
• Representing clients in various suits on compensation for industrial accidents and occupational accidents, including medical treatment benefits, sick leave benefits, disability benefits, and survivor benefits
• Representing clients in claims for industrial accident compensation insurance benefits, including claims for medical care, medical treatment benefits, sick leave benefits, disability benefits, survivor benefits, and performance on insurance premium-related matters
• General counseling on industrial accidents and occupational safety and health
• Counseling clients on statutory social insurance programs including employment insurance, national pension insurance, industrial accident compensation insurance and health insurance
• Counseling clients on decisions about occupational diseases and occupational injuries including diseases resulting from excessive labor and stress, claims regarding industrial accident compensation, and defense and representation in civil, criminal and administrative litigation
• Counseling and representing clients concerning insurance benefit claims by public servants, soldiers, school personnel, seamen, and other persons

Representative Matters

• Represented clients in the Supreme Court case regarding issues under the Act on the Protection of Temporary Workers, which was selected as the Case of the Year 2008 by Hankyoreh 21
• Represented the families of the victims of industrial accident at a semiconductor factory of Samsung Electronics in industrial accident administrative litigation
• Advised Kia Motors Ltd regarding corporate performance management process
• Represented clients in a case involving termination of employment for sexual harassment at Incheon International Airport
• Represented clients in a case involving the cancellation of the termination of employment of public officials
• Advised foreign companies including BATK, Otis Elevator, and Bayer Korea Ltd. concerning human resource management and preliminary measures
• Advised and represented Hyundai Motors and Kia Motors in termination of employment cases
• Represented clients in industrial accident and negligence cases involving railroad construction workers and school principals
• Advised and represented clients in severance pay cases