Daegu Prepares to Launch 'Labor Mutual Aid Association' for Non-Traditional Workers

The 'Daegu Labor Mutual Aid Association,' established to support non-traditional workers who are unable to properly exercise even basic rights under labor law, is gearing up for its official launch in November with the formation of its preparatory committee. This regional solidarity organization aims to improve the reality for 'solo' workers who find it difficult to access not only welfare benefits like holiday gifts, congratulatory/condolence allowances, and health check-ups, but also fundamental rights guaranteed by labor law. The preparatory committee, formed with an individual contribution of 100,000 won per person, plans to recruit 500 members by the end of the year to commence the association's operations.

The mutual aid association will provide various welfare services including holiday gifts, health check-ups, congratulatory/condolence allowances, compensation for accidents/disasters, and small loans for emergency living expenses. It will also offer legal consultations on issues such as wage arrears, industrial accidents, and unfair dismissals, as well as tax consultations and cultural experience programs.

Lee Jeong-a, labor representative of the Daegu Labor Mutual Aid Association Preparatory Committee, stated that in an era of diversifying labor, the methods of solidarity must also diversify. She explained that the Daegu Labor Mutual Aid Association will serve as a new form of organization, a solidarity against isolation and a social safety net created by workers themselves. She emphasized that mutual aid is not just welfare but a new organizational approach, a solidarity against isolation, and a social safety net built by labor itself.

Just as Labor Day signifies not only the recovery of rights but also the power of solidarity, the new path for the labor movement ahead lies in protecting lives alongside struggles and taking responsibility for each other's lives. Representative Lee Jeong-a stressed that the labor mutual aid association is not a system created by someone else, but one 'built together in solidarity.' She explained that one person's contribution creates solidarity, and when 100 preparatory committee members gather, it results in 100 connections, not just 100 sponsorships, defining this as 'the strength to protect each other' rather than just 'funds.'

She concluded by stating that the future of labor will arrive not through grand slogans, but by building relationships that protect each other, transforming isolation into solidarity and discrimination into equality. She appealed to everyone to break down isolation, which is the focus of labor's perspective, and to live by building and protecting together.