In today’s News and Commentary, Hyundai Motors workers launch a full-day strike and a federal judge rules in favor of a Vermont dairy plant in a closure dispute. 

On Friday, the Hyundai Motors branch of the Korean Metal Workers’ Union (KMWU) launched its first full-day strike in ten years, an effort which culminated in a rally in Seoul. Nearly 40,000 plant workers scheduled to work the morning and afternoon shifts organized consecutive walkouts, which left production lines idle for 16 hours straight. Though this full-day walkout is the first in a decade, it comes on the back of 104 hours worth of partial strikes initiated by the workers since May 6. The series of two to six hour partial strikes have already resulted in “lost production of around 55,200 vehicles…estimated to exceed 2.3 trillion won ($1.7 billion),” according to official industry estimates. The union plans to build on Friday’s strike action, having announced additional four-hour partial strikes for this coming Monday and Tuesday. Last Monday, the union ended its 40-day break from bargaining by participating in the 16th round of negotiations, but efforts once again stalled without an agreement in sight. Union leadership clarified that workers will not agree to a deal that does not meet demands regarding the extension of workers’ retirement age from 60 to 65, bonus increases, and the reinstatement of dismissed workers.

On Thursday, a federal judge lifted a temporary restraining order which kept Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) from closing its plant in St. Albans, Vermont. Teamsters Local 597, which represents approximately 80 plant employees, sought court intervention against the plant’s closure, which the union said had a “potential union-busting motive”: retaliation for a strike last year. The court made its decision despite the union’s argument that the plant closure would cause irreparable harm to employees’ healthcare. Though the decision authorized the company to remove hazardous materials from the plant, it prevented DFA from taking additional steps to further the sale of the building until after arbitration is complete. Senator Bernie Sanders joined the workers in holding a press conference on Wednesday calling for the company to reopen the facility. DFA denied accusations of union-busting, claiming that evidence supporting the accusation was fabricated and maintaining “that the plant simply isn’t profitable enough to justify keeping it running.”