Expertise

Labor Disputes

overview

Shin & Kim’s Labor Disputes Practice specializes in disputes in the employment and labor industry. Our team of experts include former judicial researchers in the labor department at the Supreme Court, those who served at the Ministry of Employment and Labor and on the Central Labor Relations Committee, and those who held in-house counsel positions at various companies and institutions. The wealth of hands-on experience and know-how with the various dispute resolution fora makes the Practice a leader advising clients in all aspects of labor disputes. It has won a number of landmark cases that has shaped the interpretation of labor laws in Korea.

Our team understands the implications labor issues have on our clients’ commercial objectives. Having experience in the complex issues that can arise with an individual or a group of employees, as well as being sensitive to policies that a government authority may have, allows our experts to provide accurate and practical solutions when facing a dispute.

Key Services

The Practice provides advice with respect to disputes relating to the following.

  • Various wage types, severance pay, incentive, ordinary wage, and minimum salary
  • Dismissal by disciplinary action, layoff, and dismissal for poor performance; Cases filed for relief in regard to unfair dismissal with the Central Labor Relations Committee
  • Personnel measures, including unfair transfers, standby for appointment, removal from a position and other disciplinary measures; Cases filed for relief in regard to unfair transfers with the Central Labor Relations Committee 
  • Determination of employee status concerning a company’s executive or an employee under a special employment contract
  • Disguised subcontracting and illegal dispatch 
  • Non-regular employees including temporary employees, including the right of a temporary employee to expect renewal of the employment contract and correction of discrimination against temporary employees
  • Industrial accidents and industrial safety and health
  • Collective labor-management disputes, including a labor union’s collective bargaining and act of dispute and cases filed for relief in regard to unfair labor practice with the Central Labor Relations Committee
  • Various labor related injunctions, including prohibiting an act of dispute, accepting a collective bargaining, paying salaries, preserving an employee status and suspending the effect of employment rules, etc.
Experience
  • Ssangyong Motor in a Supreme Court appeal with respect to a lawsuit filed by dismissed employees.
  • Korea Railroad Corp. in a Supreme Court appeal with respect to a lawsuit filed by KTX female crew members for disguised subcontracting and illegal dispatch.
  • L insurance company in defences and appeals with respect to a lawsuit filed by training team leaders of the company for payment of severance pay by claiming employee status.
  • K company in defences and appeals relating to a lawsuit filed by employees of an internal partner company for disguised subcontracting and illegal dispatch.
  • Korea Yakult in defences and appeals relating to a lawsuit filed by delivery men claiming payment of severance pay by arguing employee status.
  • D company in defences and appeals relating to a lawsuit relating to the dismissal of an employee due to poor performance.
  • S construction company in defences and appeals relating to a lawsuit filed by daily employees at the construction site claiming payment of unpaid allowances based on the concept of comprehensive wages.
  • E company in defences and appeals with respect to a lawsuit filed by certain employees claiming invalidity of the transfer of their positions following the company’s transfer of the employees with poor performance to different departments and change of positions.
Awards and Rankings
Award's signature
  • Ranked Band 1 Law Firm for Employment
    Chambers Asia 2024
  • Ranked Band 1 Law Firm for Dispute Resolution - Litigation
    Chambers Global / Chambers Asia 2014-2017, 2021-2022
  • Ranked Tier 1 Law Firm for Dispute Resolution
    Asia Pacific Legal500 2015-2018, 2020-2023
  • Litigation Law Firm of the Year
    ALB Korea Law Awards 2018
  • Labour and Employment Law Firm of the Year
    ALB Korea Legal Awards 2017