On January 13, as Seoul’s city bus labor union began an indefinite full-scale strike, electronic display boards at the Seoul Station bus transfer center showed buses on all routes marked as “waiting to depart.” (Yonhap)
SEOUL, Jan. 13 (Korea Bizwire) — Unionized city bus drivers in Seoul began an indefinite strike early Tuesday after marathon wage talks with management collapsed, bringing all intracity bus services to a halt and raising fears of widespread commuting disruptions in the capital.
Negotiations stretched for more than 10 hours into the early morning, but ended without agreement around 1:30 a.m., hours before the strike was scheduled to begin. Bus operations were suspended starting with the first departures at 4 a.m., affecting hundreds of routes across the city.
At the center of the dispute is how to implement a recent Supreme Court ruling requiring that regular bonuses be counted as part of workers’ base pay.
Bus companies proposed a 10.3 percent wage increase to reflect the ruling, coupled with a restructuring of the wage system to incorporate bonuses into base salaries in order to manage rising labor costs.
The union rejected the offer, arguing that the additional compensation mandated by the court should not be treated as a subject of negotiation.
A signboard at a bus stop in Seoul on Jan. 13, 2026, shows all buses are parked at a depot. (Yonhap)
Instead, union leaders called for a separate 3 percent wage increase without changes to the existing pay structure, an extension of the retirement age to 65, and the elimination of what they described as discriminatory pay practices.
No further formal talks have been scheduled, though both sides signaled that informal discussions could continue.
The strike affects more than 7,300 buses operating on 394 routes run by 64 bus companies, all of which participate in the unionized system.
City officials moved quickly to mitigate the impact, adding subway services during the morning rush hour, extending late-night subway operations until 2 a.m. Wednesday, and arranging free shuttle buses between residential neighborhoods and subway stations.
Seoul’s metropolitan government said the emergency measures would remain in place as long as the strike continues, urging residents to rely on rail transit and to allow extra time for travel.
M. H. Lee (mhlee@koreabizwire.com)
