President Lee Jae-myung enters the opening ceremony of the National Fire Service Hospital in Eumseong, South Chungcheong Province, on the 11th. Reporter Kwon Wook
President Lee Jae-myung again directed the government to spell out, in decrees and enforcement rules, the specific scope of labor disputes permitted under the so-called Yellow Envelope Law, the revised Trade Union Act.
The order is seen as a call for the Ministry of Employment and Labor to provide clear guidance amid growing confusion on the ground over management decisions — such as Samsung Electronics’ union arguing that the company’s semiconductor cluster investment in the Honam region could affect working conditions.
At a Cabinet meeting held at the Government Complex in Sejong on the 11th, Lee told Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon: “There have been calls to spell out the cases that are clearly not subject to labor disputes, and that argument has some merit.” He added, “I don’t see any reason it can’t be done.” Lee also said, “The rules and cases on whether something is subject to a dispute under the Yellow Envelope Law need to be clarified, but there is criticism that the ministry has not been drawing up the rules.”
The remarks amounted to a public rebuke, urging a more active response after the ministry leaned toward reinforcing interpretive guidelines that carry no legal binding force. In response to Lee’s order, the ministry decided to consider creating a new enforcement decree focused on defining the scope of labor disputes.
Lee also urged officials to actively accept public objections to the recently contested tax overhaul. Turning to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Koo Yun-cheol, he said, “Anyone who deals with taxes is bound to take heat,” and, “Those who face a heavier burden from tax changes will feel enormous resentment.” He stressed, “When the government puts forward a proposal, it means there is room for change.” He also told Koo with a smile to keep his head down.
President Lee Jae-myung speaks at a cabinet meeting held at the Government Complex in Sejong on the 11th. Reporter Kwon Wook
Meanwhile, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jung-kwan reported on the results of the second public-private review meeting on the three mega-projects, setting 2029 as the target for the first phase of completion of the Honam semiconductor cluster. It was the first time the responsible ministry has presented a specific completion timeline.
Lee: “Change Taxes and You’re Bound to Take Heat… Government Proposals Have Room for Change”
President Lee called for clearer standards on labor disputes under the Yellow Envelope Law while also leaving open the possibility of revising the contested tax overhaul. The remarks are read as reflecting mounting corporate concern over the law’s vague standards and the spread of opposition to changes in property taxes. Lee signaled his intent to accommodate views from the field as much as possible, saying, “When the government puts forward a proposal, it means there is room for change.”
At the Cabinet meeting, Lee effectively rebuked the Ministry of Employment and Labor, saying, “I said the cases on whether something is subject to a dispute under the Yellow Envelope Law need to be clarified, but there is criticism that the ministry has not been drawing up the rules.” He had given the same instruction to Labor Minister Kim Young-hoon at a Cabinet meeting on the 21st of last month, but with no clear movement, he pressed again in public for the standards to be set.
Kim explained that “the intent was that this cannot be done through an enforcement decree” and that “everything has already been handled through administrative interpretation.” In fact, since the Yellow Envelope Law took effect, the ministry has pursued reinforcing existing administrative interpretation guidelines with cases and explanations, rather than defining the scope of labor disputes through an enforcement decree. The reasoning was that, absent an explicit delegation clause in the parent law, setting specific standards through a decree could raise questions of executive overreach.
Lee, however, said that “setting the details needed to enforce a law is an executive power granted by the Constitution” and that “it is not the case that it cannot be set simply because it is not in the law.” He then made clear that “administrative interpretation and presenting standards set by law are different things.” Kim ultimately replied that he would “review it more actively.” Going forward, the ministry plans to give substance to its existing interpretive guidelines while also examining the possibility of creating a new enforcement decree.
Lee’s comments on the tax overhaul are read as stressing that a policy can be revised in line with public opinion even after the government has unveiled it. Lee said, “In listening to public opinion, it is desirable to accept objections when they arise,” adding, “A self-evident truth that draws no dissent is different from a policy. Rather than unilaterally pushing through a finalized plan, when the government puts forward a proposal, it means there is room for change.”
Given that Lee has ordered a full review of the overhaul of the Individual Savings Account (ISA), which drew strong pushback from investors, especially young adults, and the so-called stock-price-suppression prevention bill, attention is turning to whether his remarks will lead to further revisions on other issues, including property taxes. Koo also said, “This tax overhaul is not the government’s final plan,” pledging to submit it to the National Assembly after revising it to reflect public views.
Separately, noting that this year marks the 20th anniversary of Sejong City receiving its official name, Lee asked officials to “do their utmost with the mindset of opening an era of a presidential office in Sejong within this administration’s term and holding the term’s final Cabinet meeting at the Sejong office.”
President Lee Jae-myung speaks at a cabinet meeting held at the Government Complex in Sejong on the 11th. Reporter Kwon Wook
Lee also drew a line against the view that differing voices within the government amount to “policy discord.” The rebuttal came after the trade minister raised the need for exemptions from the 52-hour workweek while the labor minister took a cautious stance, prompting claims of a clash between ministries.
Lee said, “Coordinating all the internal views among ministries and then releasing only a tidied-up, finalized position to the outside and forcing it through is in fact the kind of closed-door administration that has been criticized in the past.” He stressed, “The most democratic process is one in which views are freely offered from the early stages of discussion, the public weighs in, arguments are made back and forth, and a certain conclusion is reached through debate and adjustment.”
Lee also raised the expanded authority of the police following the revision of the Criminal Procedure Act, which abolished the prosecution’s supplementary investigation powers. Citing public concern over rising crime, relief for victims, fact-finding, and the arrest and punishment of offenders, he instructed the National Police Agency to “organize how to respond to ordinary crime and report measures at an appropriate time.”
Lee also stressed that the government must devote effort to finding growth engines to succeed semiconductors. He said, “Along with the three mega-projects, we must continue our efforts to uncover the seeds of the future that we will nurture,” adding that “small modular reactors (SMRs), renewable energy, quantum computing, aerospace, and advanced bio are key fields that will determine leadership in the world’s future industries.”