Train driver s rise to South Korea s cabinet gets mixed reaction

SEOUL - When South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s Cabinet picks were unveiled on June 23 afternoon, Mr Kim Young-hoon was in the driver’s seat — literally.

The 57-year-old train driver, who was operating a train between Gimcheon and Busan with his phone turned off, says he did not learn of his historic nomination to the Cabinet until an hour after the news broke. Only after completing his shift and stepping off the train in Gimcheon, North Gyeongsang Province, did Mr Kim hear from colleagues that he had been tapped to be South Korea’s next labour minister, he told Yonhap.

The nomination marks a milestone: Mr Kim is set to become the country’s first blue-collar worker to head the Ministry of Employment and Labour. His selection by the liberal president has drawn both praise and scepticism, highlighting the growing debate over labour representation at the top levels of policymaking.

Mr Kim has a decade of experience in labour activism, including leading the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) from 2010 to 2012, during the administration of former President Lee Myung-bak, a conservative businessman-turned-politician.

The KCTU is the largest labour group in South Korea, representing some 1.2 million workers. Known for its combative stance, it has frequently clashed with conservative governments, staging nationwide strikes and sit-in protests over labour rights and policy disputes. Some of its strikes in the past had involved violence.

Mr Kim, has to go through a confirmation hearing, is the first-ever KCTU member nominated for the role of labour minister. Since the Ministry of Employment and Labour was established in 2010, labour ministers have typically chosen from among government officials, administrators, professors and legislators.

The public reaction to Mr Kim’s nomination was mixed, ranging from online congratulations to deep distrust regarding his KCTU, blue-collar background.

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