National Assembly Speaker Jo Jeong-sik met with Minister of Employment and Labor Kim Young-hoon at the speaker's office Friday to discuss labor policy in the AI era and measures to strengthen industrial safety.
During the meeting, Jo thanked Kim for his role in resolving the Samsung Electronics labor-management dispute. "On behalf of the National Assembly, I want to express my gratitude for successfully mediating the labor negotiations that had the entire nation worried," Jo said.
Jo also called on the minister to help steer the country toward what he described as an "AI basic society" — one in which all members of society share equally in the benefits of technological change. "The great AI transformation is raising critical questions about the future of work," he said. "Please join us in overcoming the polarization and labor alienation that may arise during the AI transition, and in moving toward an 'AI basic society' where everyone benefits."
Jo said technological innovation must ultimately serve human well-being, and asked the ministry to expand AI literacy training for workers at small and medium-sized enterprises that lack research and development capacity.
On industrial safety, Jo said a 17.5 percent year-on-year drop in workplace fatalities was encouraging, but added that the same types of accidents continue to recur at some worksites. He asked the ministry to develop prevention-focused measures alongside post-accident responses.
Kim said technological progress must not marginalize people, and that the gains from growth should be shared broadly without deepening inequality during the transition. On labor issues, he asked the Assembly to swiftly pass relevant legislation to uphold what he called the basic principles of the workplace — that workers should be able to do their jobs without dying or getting injured, and receive the wages they are owed.
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