Tensions mount as Ssangyong employees seek to evict fired workers

PYEONGTAEK, South Korea, Aug. 3 (Yonhap) -- Tensions were mounting on Monday as
thousands of employees at Ssangyong Motor Co. considered moving into a part of
the company's only plant that has been occupied by fired workers for more than
two months.
Some 550 laid-off Ssangyong workers remained holed up in the plant's paint, where
they have been since May 22, protesting the company's job cuts. The mass layoffs
were part of a restructuring plan ordered by the court in February when Ssangyong
entered bankruptcy protection.
Hopes to peacefully end the standoff were dashed on Sunday as three days of
marathon talks between the management and the Ssangyong labor union broke off due
to differences over how many fired workers would be given their jobs back.
Inside the plant, about 2,000 employees were preparing to enter the painting
facility to disperse the fired workers. Thousands of riot police were also
surrounding the plant.
"Our basic stance is that we will regain the site by ourselves if the sit-in
continues," said a company official. "But we haven't decided yet when to move
in."
The company has cut off water and electricity to the paint shop, which is packed
with flammable materials. Since the talks broke down, 98 fired workers have
voluntarily left the site, according to the official.
Ssangyong has until Sept. 15 to submit its final turnaround program to its
creditors and a bankruptcy judge.
The standoff has darkened the prospects for Ssangyong's survival, costing nearly
300 billion won (US$245.1 million) in lost production.
A group of Ssangyong suppliers said they will ask the bankruptcy judge to
liquidate the troubled carmaker on Wednesday.
In the first six months of this year, Ssangyong's sales plunged 73.9 percent from
the same period last year to 13,020 units.
Ssangyong is still 51-percent owned by China's Shanghai Automotive Industry
Corp., but the parent lost management control after Ssangyong entered bankruptcy
protection.
(END)