1st June was the 172nd day that the Korea Telecom (KT) part-time workers started their struggle against the lay-off of 7,000 contract workers. In mid-May, KT, as part of their plans for privatization, announced that the telephone directory unit the '114 unit' will be separated and sold off, which the reactionary KT union agreed to.
A few years ago, KT had closed up the domestic collect call unit, comprising of mostly women workers, and now the 114 unit, also comprising of mostly women, is to be separated, further threatening job stability of the already unstable status of women workers of KT. The KT workers of the 114 unit had been continuing their sit-in's at KT branches all around the nation since the announcement, and on 1st June, gathered together in Bundang, near Seoul. But what was waiting for them at the main headquarters was a brigade of riot police who soon started their attack.
Police force of 1,500 came unto the 150 workers and confiscated the workers' camping equipment, beating them with clubs and pipes, leaving several injured. One worker was even thrown out of the police bus. Although there were less than 10 workers left on the devastated site demonstrating and denouncing the brutal attack, 500 riot police raided for the second time in the afternoon, taking away the remaining equipment and dispersing the mere handful of workers.