South Korean bus drivers return to work after strike causes rush-hour chaos | transport

Seoul Bus Labor Union agrees to 4.48 p.c wage rise to return to work.

1000’s of bus drivers in South Korea’s capital of Seoul have returned to work hours after launching a strike that precipitated chaos for rush-hour commuters

The Seoul Bus Labor Union on Thursday agreed to a 4.48 p.c wage rise plus 650,000 gained ($480) in vacation bonuses, the Seoul metropolis authorities mentioned, almost 12 hours after the commercial motion disrupted nearly all bus routes within the capital.

The breakthrough cleared the best way for the resumption of bus companies forward of the night rush hour.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon had pleaded for a swift compromise between the 2 sides, saying residents’ livelihoods trusted the bus companies.

Drivers started the strike, the primary since 2012, at about 4am on Thursday after employers did not comply with their calls for for a 12.7 p.c improve in hourly pay.

The Seoul metropolis authorities prolonged the subway’s working hours to 2am and put 480 non-union buses into service to assist mitigate the disruption.

The strike left many bus stations round Seoul empty as commuters switched to the subway to get to work.

“I wasn’t conscious of the bus strike as a result of I don’t comply with the information carefully,” Cho Min-sang was quoted as telling the Yonhap Information Company.

“I used to be puzzled as a result of there have been no bus schedules on the bus station screens.”

South Korea is at the moment experiencing a docs’ strike as 1000’s of trainee docs protest in opposition to authorities plans to extend medical faculty admissions.