General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea

The General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea (GFTUK; Korean: 조선직업총동맹; Hancha: 朝鮮職業總同盟) is the sole legal trade union federation in North Korea. GFTUK was formed on November 30, 1945 as the General Federation of Trade Unions of North Korea.^[1] In January 1951, it was reorganized and adopted its current name.^[2] The chairman of the central committee of GFTUK is Pak In-chol.^[3]

General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea

Founded	30 November 1945 (1945-11-30)
Location	North Korea
Members	1.6 million (2003)
Ideology	Kimilsungism–Kimjongilism
Key people	Pak In-chol (chairman)
Publication	Rodongja Sinmun
Affiliations	DFRK, WFTU
Korean name
Chosŏn'gŭl	조선직업총동맹
Hancha	朝鮮職業總同盟
Revised Romanization	Joseon Jigeom Chongdongmaeng
McCune–Reischauer	Chosŏn Chigŏm Ch'ongdongmaeng

Organization

As of 2003^[update], GFTUK has 1.6 million members,^[4] down from more than 2.4 million in the 1970s.^[5] During the Cold War, its membership was about half of the membership of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). The ratio was comparatively low for a socialist country, evidencing the relatively unimportant role of unions in North Korea, which was one of the most industrialized socialist countries.^[6] Nevertheless, GFTUK was considered one of the most important mass organizations in the country.^[7] All workers of 30 years of age are required to be members of GFTUK if they are not members of WPK, the Union of Agricultural Workers of Korea, or the Socialist Women's Union of Korea.^[1]

Domestically, GFTUK was a member of the popular front Democratic Front for the Reunification of Korea^[8] until its dissolution in 2024.^[9] Internationally, the Federation is affiliated to the World Federation of Trade Unions,^[10] which it joined on May 2, 1947.^[11] The unions of GFTUK are affiliated to the various branch organizations of WFTU. The head of the international department of GFTUK is Im Jong-gi (임종기).^{[citation needed]}

The website of the Korean Friendship Association states that "(The GFTUK) conducts ideological education to ensure its members fully understand the Juche idea and gets them to take part in socialist construction and the management of the socialist economy with the attitude befitting masters. It has its organizations in different branches of industry."^[2] However, the North Korea Handbook states that the GFTUK is not designed to serve its members but the WPK.^[1] GFTUK is directly controlled by the Central Committee of the WPK.^[12]

Rodongja Sinmun is the organ of the Central Committee of GFTUK.^[13] Officially, the guiding ideology of the organization is Kimilsungism–Kimjongilism.^[14]

Former chairmen

• Ryom Sun-gil (렴순길) (2000s)^[4]
• Ju Yong-gil (주용길) (2010s)^[15]
• Ju Yong-guk (2010s)^[16]

List of unions affiliated to GFTUK

GFTUK has two types of trade unions, the ones in state enterprises and the ones in private enterprises.^{[citation needed]}

The following trade unions, representing nine different industries,^[17] comprise GFTUK:^[4]

• Trade Union of Metal and Engineering Industries of Korea
• Trade Union of Mining and Power Industries of Korea
• Trade Union of Light and Chemical Industries of Korea
• Trade Union of Public Employees and Service Workers of Korea
• Trade Union of Construction and Forestry Workers of Korea
• Trade Union of Educational and Cultural Workers of Korea
• Trade Union of Transport and Fisheries Workers of Korea

See also

• North Korea portal
• Organized Labor portal

• Trade unions in South Korea

References

1. Yonhap 2002, p. 389.
2. "Democratic People's Republic of Korea_Juche Korea". korea-dpr.com. Archived from the original on 2016-12-08. Retrieved 2016-12-04.
3. "11th Enlarged Plenary Meeting of 7th Central Committee of GFTUK Held". KCNA. 5 March 2021. Retrieved 8 March 2021 – via KCNA Watch.
4. The Europa World Year. Vol. II: Kazakhstan - Zimbabwe (45th ed.). London: Europa Publications. 2004. p. 2486. ISBN 978-1-85743-255-8.
5. "Korea". The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (3rd ed.). The Gale Group, Inc. 1970–1979. Retrieved 31 January 2021 – via TheFreeDictionary.com.
6. Santonen, Arvo (1989). Kansainvälinen (in Finnish). Vol. 3: Työväenliike Aasiassa, Afrikassa ja Latinalaisessa Amerikassa. Espoo: Weilin+Göös. p. 39. ISBN 951-35-4211-4.
7. Scalapino, Robert A.; Chun-yŏp Kim (1983). North Korea Today: Strategic and Domestic Issues. Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California, Berkeley, Center for Korean Studies. p. 84. ISBN 978-0-912966-55-7.
8. Lansford, Tom (2015). Political Handbook of the World 2015. Singapore: CQ Press. p. 3330. ISBN 978-1-4833-7155-9.
9. "Longstanding N. Korean unification-oriented front dissolves itself, saying there's 'no need' for it". The Hankyoreh. 25 March 2024. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
10. "International Organizations". North Korea in the World. East-West Center, The National Committee on North Korea. 22 May 2016. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
11. Implementation of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: Second Periodic Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Articles 16 and 17 of the Covenant: Addendum: Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DOC). United Nations Economic and Social Council. 15 May 2002. p. 13. E/1990/6/Add.35. Retrieved 3 February 2021.
12. "Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2015: Korea, Democratic People's Republic of". Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor; U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
13. Yonhap 2002, p. 425.
14. "General Federation of Trade Unions of Korea". Naenara. Retrieved 2023-01-09.
15. "Civil servants mark this year's first sports day". The Pyongyang Times. KCNA. 2017-01-10. Retrieved 2017-05-16.
16. "6th Session of the 13th SPA Held". North Korea Leadership Watch. 14 April 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
17. "Workers' Organizations". North Korea Leadership Watch. 16 January 2018. Retrieved 25 February 2019.

Works cited

• Yonhap (2002). North Korea Handbook. Seoul: M.E. Sharpe. ISBN 978-0-7656-3523-5.

Further reading

• Kim Jong-il (1986). On Further Improving the Work of the Trade Unions: A Letter to the Participants in the National Training Course for Trade Union Workers May 3, 1984 (PDF). Pyongyang: Foreign Languages Publishing House. OCLC 59863019. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 18, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2017.