South Korea’s parliament on Friday ratified key International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions on workers’ rights and forced labor, which have long stalled due to objections from businesses and conservative politicians.
The nation joined the United Nations agency in 1991 but had not adopted four of its eight key conventions, lagging behind international standards in protecting labor rights.
The National Assembly passed motions to ratify three of them — No. 29 on forced labor, No. 87 on freedom of association and protection of the right to organize and No. 98 on the right to organize and collective bargaining.
