Unionized workers at SC First Bank return to work

(ATTN: ADDS more info about Q2 earnings at bottom)
SEOUL, Aug. 29 (Yonhap) -- Unionized employees at SC First Bank came back to work on Monday, following a nearly two-month strike to protest against the bank's move to introduce a merit pay scheme.
More than 2,500 unionized workers at the Korean unit of Standard Chartered Plc returned to their workplaces, but will stage a slowdown and hold a rally Wednesday in a show of their will to continue the protest.
Angered by a management plan to adopt a performance-based pay system, the labor union at SC First Bank has been on strike since late June, the longest work stoppage in the history of the local banking sector.
Even as bank employees resumed their work, market watchers estimated that it would take longer for the bank to see its business return to normal.
SC First Bank is the first lender operating in South Korea to seek an overhaul of the seniority-based salary scheme. Its unionized workers, who account for about half of 6,500 bank employees, are vehemently opposing the move, claiming that it is aimed merely at cutting labor costs and does not jibe with Korean culture.
The game of chicken between labor and management is increasing inconveniences for bank customers. The bank has temporarily shut down about 10 percent of its nearly 400 branches due to the labor strike.
"We have yet to decide whether to re-open temporarily shuttered branches," said Joo Hee-sun, a spokeswoman at SC First Bank.
Meanwhile, the bank said it posted a net profit of 112 billion won (US$104.3 million) in the second quarter, down 1.26 percent from the previous year. In the first half, the bank's net income came to 249.3 billion, up 15 percent from a year ago, due to improved lending margins.
sooyeon@yna.co.kr