Welcome to BASE21

Despite an end to Seoul subway workers' walkout Monday, an umbrella labor organization renewed its resolve to escalate protests into a general strike on May 1, or May Day.

"The ending of the subway workers' strike was a strategic retreat to earn time and energy for a bigger and extended struggle planned for the month of May," Lee Kap-yong, chairman of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU). told reporters at Myongdong Cathedral in downtown Seoul.

"Some 88 unions will participate in the May Day protest," said Lee, warning that a second strike by Seoul subway workers was also possible.

Lee denied media reports that he was thinking of resigning to take responsibility for the collapse of the strike by Seoul subway labor union, an influential unit of the KCTU, which ended an eight-day-long walkout to protest government-proposed layoffs earlier in the week.

Lee accused the government and the press of spreading other false rumors.

"The government and the press are spreading unfounded rumors about serious internal conflicts and raising the possibility of a collapse of our organization," Lee said.

In an ensuing press conference, Seok Chi-soon, head of the Seoul subway labor union, backed Lee by raising the possibility of a second strike if government keeps "rejecting negotiations and continues clamping down on subway workers who participated in the walkout."

"Seoul City has so far made no response to our request for dialogue.

If the government keeps ostracizing us, we are capable of taking drastic measures like slowdown strikes or simply stopping operation," said Seok.

Seok also called an immediate withdrawal of police who have been deployed at stations to protect rank-and-file workers who voluntarily returned to work from labor leaders.