Trade unions and Media : experience and suggestion

Jin Il-joo (the trade union Hyundai Heavy Industry)

1. Introduction
Anyone who knows a little about computers thinks at first that they can use them for educating and organizing people sharing information more frequently and easily, making database and having union tasks done efficiently. However, in reality all members in a union are not aware of the computers so that if someone says he knows about the computers very well, others usually feel very jealousy to him. It is not easy to convince union officers of the usage of computers.
From the first stage of planning a budget, argyments take place about money. All things such as buying computers, installing network, making database and educating union members cost the union a large amount of monet. Although everyone agrees to the task, whenever a plan of budget is made, ther part of information and communication get aside and is considered as the least important one. That is why the budget is usually cut down to be insufficient to use.
I think only pioneers can prepare or the futher and the first step is very significant point.
I am very grateful for the people having prepared Seoul International LaborMedia '97 and I hope that the role and the quality of information communication movement could be heightened through it.

2. About the process 
- In late 1996, several members had a meeting at first and gathered more(5-6 peoples) and made a plan. But it didn't work, because of the general strike.
- In '97budget, we include the finance for educating union members.
Some agreed and some disagreed. There was a little big argument. 1 million won was for it.
- The first education from late May to late June(using company facilities for education). The number of participants was 60. (They gathered only two hours after advertising)
- In June, 3 million won was added for the budget.
- Managing CUG: We opened CUG in order to use it for communication education. We have unionists get ID in pc communication network and let them use CUG. : one tenth of them use CUG after the education. Other way is needed to boost them to use it.
- In late June, we rented a office room(paid activists private money and also bought fifteen pentium computers)
- We started educating union members from mid August. Two teams are managed everyday and schedule till December is settled.
(contents: structure of computers, managing Windows95, Han gul 3.0b(Korean word processor), pc communication: 10 times totally)
- Anyone who wants to keep studying after finishing one course, has to apply for other programs form 1 to 4 o'clock on Saturday.
- Document database is under constructing with materials we have.(It will be finished till the present executive finish their term of office.)
- All we do recently is to educate union members and other things we want to do is not being done because almost put priority to the event of selecting a next executive.

3. Plan in the short run
- to include education one in the general budget of next year.
- to upgrade a exclusive circuit from 56K -> 128K and teach internet.
- to educate union officers in the region, and to educate poor students
- to educate wives of union members
- to equip a server

4. Suggestions for the directrion of information communication activities in labor movement.
Who will use the server they are trying to equi in KCTU?
For whom does information communication exist?
I suggest followings since I don't want the monopoly or unilateral contril of information like electronic identity card system.
You can see the fact that they are not trying to consider and organize the whole members of unions in KCTU. They don't make a much effort to do it. In order to carry the direction to the right track, the significance of organizing union members has to be recognized. Labor movement would not succeed. Only when union members trust high-ranking organizations (like KCTU), the task could be successful.
In consequence, what KCTU and information communication movement groups have to do is not only to equip their own servers as soon as possible but also to do followings.

1. Suggesstion to KCTU
*Consideration of small unions and effort for combinationg businesses(working place with less than 500 workers) : To develop softwares for accounts and organization management -> educating : There are only 1-3 full time union members in small working place and accounts business is too much for them.
*Consideration of medium unions and effort to combinating businesses(500-3000 workers) : To develop softwares for accounts and organization management -> educating : Union staffs spend such a lot of time to deal with accounts and organization management.
*Combinating businesses in large working places.(over 3000): Meetings for deeloping accounts and organization management softwares have to be held. (Money needed to develop them is collected from individual unions)

KCTU has to do those things for shopflpprs. It would make union officers pay attention to the field of infornation communication. After that more could be done.
To use the same softwares among unions could help do headquarters-leveled businesses more effectively.
*If it is difficult to develop softwares for arrange archives among the headquarters, league, and individual unions. Then, we can make the whole materials under KCTU into a database.
*Computer managers from individual leagues and local headquarters should meet together periodically to collect union members' opinions and way of networking infornation communication.

2. Suggestion to leagues and local headquarters.

KCTU cannot deucate all of the union members.
*You have to prepare an individual education place(you can use local activist groups' office if possible) & you have to find out other places available like private computer institutes of educaton room in Sejin Computer Land buildings.
*Officers of unions should be learned about computers in Saturday of Sunday. (Officers have to know and be able to use them in advance.)
*Many think CUG is only for the members of the organization. All materials we have should be opened to the public and just one patr of menu has to be left for secret ones.

3. Suggestion to individual unions(in large working place)

proposition 1) Education place could be made by big suppor and assist from trade unions.
Education in the level of each working place, education for small unions' officers, education for poor students in each region(this can make the local resident think favorable about the union)
proposition 2)
proposition 3) independent management in shop floor organization : in case that it is hard for a union to support.
Inthis case the first thing they can do is through a legislative 1) to demand deucation fund in budget 2) to ask for using reserve funds to deucate union members.
The second is to at least collect people agreeing to it and prepare a space for educating.

4. And others
Cooperative task in local level : You can do joint tasks with gathering several regional unions.(or by local headquarters)

We always talk about grassroots democracy(local autunomy), and I think this is necessary in diverse parts. Both of the central part and affiliates of the organization have their own role. The latter has to demand what the center has to do and the former has to shpport the affiliates to do their own roles. This si our principle.

 
