The Chaebol Returns To The Presidency 1967 [EN]: Chapter 116

116. Naked in the Poop Water

D Textile Factory in Incheon.

Over 200 female workers from all over the country lived and boarded in the dormitory.

Handwritten posters were haphazardly plastered on the dormitory walls.

– Improve our treatment!

– Punish the violent thugs!

– Punish sexual harassment!

– Raise our salaries!

The female workers’ union had negotiated with the company five times, but the company’s response was consistent.

“If you’re not happy, go somewhere better!”

That evening at 8 p.m., they were scheduled to meet in the cafeteria to hold a meeting and decide whether to strike.

Then, three employees wearing masks came in with buckets and began to scoop something out with dippers, scattering it on the floor and chairs.

A foul odor permeated the air. They were spreading poop water to prevent the gathering.

The executive branch rushed over to protest.

“What are you doing! Why are you interfering with a legitimate gathering!”

“Who’s interfering? We’re just fertilizing for farming.”

“Do you think we can’t do it because of this? We’re going to report you!”

“Good point. Report us! For obstruction of business.”

The female workers came in and surrounded the male employees.

“Get out of the way!”

“We can’t move!”

“Eek!”

The male employee splashed a dipper of poop water at the female workers.

“Aah!”

The filth got on their faces and clothes, and the smell was overwhelming.

As they were panicking, someone shouted.

“The police are here!”

Suppression police [riot police], having been called by the company, stormed in up to the lower floor.

The female workers were frightened, and their faces turned pale.

The executive branch shouted.

“If we take off our clothes, they can’t arrest us. If they touch us, it’s sexual harassment!”

They couldn’t keep their clothes on because they were covered in filth.

The female workers hesitated.

The executive branch took off their clothes, leaving only their underwear.

Only then did the other female workers take off their clothes.

The suppression police who came upstairs were wide-eyed.

The stench was overwhelming, and the female workers were half-naked.

“Get out of here! We’re having a legitimate gathering!”

The police hesitated. The commander ordered.

“Arrest them!”

Wow~

The suppression police rushed at the female workers and arrested them indiscriminately.

“Aah!”

*

Ten female worker executives walked toward the presidential office in Gwanghwamun [the South Korean equivalent of the White House].

A security guard blocked them at the entrance.

“This is a restricted area, so you can’t pass. Ugh, what’s that smell!”

A foul odor was emanating from the female workers’ bodies.

“We need to meet with the President.”

“I don’t know what your complaint is, but please register it with the Civil Affairs Office.”

“We already did, but there’s no response!”

“Please wait a little longer.”

“You’re all in cahoots.”

Suddenly, the female workers began to take off their clothes.

The security guard was disgusted.

“What are you doing here?”

The female workers shouted, unconcerned.

“Improve working conditions!”

“Condemn violent suppression!”

Newspaper reporters who received tips took pictures of the naked protest.

*

Presidential office.

The President, who saw the newspaper, asked the security office about the situation and heard the details.

The President said.

“The female workers are even staging a naked protest. There must be a desperate reason.”

“The newspaper said it was due to a labor dispute. Bringing internal company matters to the Blue House [the presidential residence] seems a bit much.”

“Hmm, no. It’s not just a labor dispute; it’s a protest against the wrong practices in our society.”

“…….”

“Bring the three executives who protested to me privately. I need to have a meeting.”

“Yes, Your Excellency!”

Three days later.

The three female workers who protested faced each other in the President’s office.

They were supposed to meet the next day, but the naked protest was charged as ‘obscene performance crime,’ and it took time to pay the fine and get out.

The general affairs department manager with the frizzy perm [permed hairstyle] explained the situation.

The President listened intently.

Listening to it, the President from the 21st century felt a sense of generational difference.

Hmm, why was it so uncivilized? Social consciousness has changed rapidly over the past 40 years.

The President asked.

“You’re saying that the salary is less than 1/3 of that of the men in the same factory?”

“Yes. The department head level is 10 times higher than that of female workers. As a woman, I am the highest-ranking person in charge. There is equal pay for equal work, but gender discrimination in wages is not being improved at all.”

The President nodded as he took notes.

“I see. What about the issue of improving treatment?”

“Female workers are forced to quit when they get married.”

“Why?”

“Because they will get pregnant and give birth, so they are cut off in advance.”

“Hmm….”

“So, many female workers live together secretly without getting married in order to work in the factory. If they get caught, they are criticized for being promiscuous. Is marriage a sin?”

“…….”

“Please take measures so that we can work even after we get married, Mr. President!”

This was rooted in gender discrimination rather than a labor dispute.

He took notes on violations of the Labor Standards Act, sexual harassment, etc.

In the UK, the Representation of the People Act of 1918 recognized the right to vote and stand for election for women over the age of 30, and it was not until 1928 that all women were granted the same suffrage as men.

Even in the United States, a free country, men and women acquired equal suffrage only in 1920.

It was the price that pioneering women paid for more than a hundred years of struggle to gain women’s suffrage [the right to vote].

In Asia and Africa, they gained suffrage without struggle in the process of colonial independence and the introduction of democracy after World War II.

So, social practices were still strongly gender discriminatory.

Gender equality was a measles that had to be cured on the way to becoming a developed country.

*

D Textile President’s Office.

Detectives stormed in.

“President Maeng, you are under arrest on charges of violating the Labor Standards Act, violence, sexual harassment, wage exploitation, and unfair dismissal!”

The president protested.

“Isn’t this completely wrong? It doesn’t make sense to treat women the same as men!”

“Talk about it at the police station.”

Click!

The reporters who had been waiting pressed the shutter at President Maeng, who was wearing handcuffs.

Click!

*

Cabinet meeting.

The new Minister of Labor and Welfare, who was instructed by the President to find out the current situation, reported to the President.

“After investigating the discrimination in wages and working conditions between men and women as a sample, the wages of women were at the level of 1/2 to 1/3. Unfair dismissals due to pregnancy and childbirth were almost customary.”

The damage suffered by the female workers who staged the naked protest was a nationwide issue.

The President instructed.

“Equal pay for equal work is applied in the industry. However, male and female labor are discriminated against. The patriarchal culture that originated from the feudal era is very deep-rooted. To eliminate it in a short period of time, strong legislation must be prepared.”

The Equal Pay Act and the Gender Discrimination Prohibition Act, which stipulate equal wages without gender discrimination, equal opportunities for education and occupation for men and women, and the obligation to install childcare facilities in companies above a certain size, were passed by the National Assembly [South Korea’s legislative body].

Prejudice was largely resolved with the passage of the Anti-Discrimination Act.

But this time, there was a controversy over reverse discrimination against gender equality.

*

National Assembly.

A state audit was being held.

A female member of the National Assembly questioned the Minister of National Defense.

“Military service points are the root of gender discrimination. The female pass rate is less than 5% in public office or corporate recruitment due to military service points. Is the Minister willing to correct this?”

“I think it is a fair treatment for national service, not discrimination. I think it is a natural treatment as a reward for serving in the military for three years for the country during the most active youth period.”

“It is unfair to limit employment that affects your entire life with a 3-year military service point.”

“Men and women are not equal. Even in the military, there is a significant difference in training performance between men and women. The military is an extreme situation where life and death are at stake, so such differences are a natural reward for ability. If you want military service points, we will consider applying the conscription system equally to women.”

*

Female representatives of the Women’s Rights Improvement Association gathered and issued a statement.

“The forced conscription of women is discriminatory equality that ignores women’s physical characteristics and the right to give birth, so our women’s organizations strongly oppose it!”

“Oppose! Oppose!”

The pros and cons debate heated up.

“Why should women be an exception to the sacred duty of national defense? Israeli women also have mandatory service; don’t you know that we are in a more dangerous truce state than Israel?”

“One of the four major duties of the people is the duty of national defense, so are women not citizens?”

“Do men want to go to the military? Are you going to get military service points? It’s an obligation. If even that compensation is a privilege, then women should also serve in the military and enjoy equal rights.”

“Feminism is about sharing the duties of the people equally.”

The issue of reverse discrimination emerged as a social issue.

*

A cabinet meeting was held.

The issue of military service points was controversial.

The Minister of National Defense clearly stated his opposition.

“If military service points are abolished, there will be no compensation for military service. Women who studied in the library during their enlistment period will be much more advantageous, so if the points are abolished, this is clearly reverse discrimination.”

The Minister of Strategy and Finance said.

“The reason why military service points are a problem now is because mandatory service is only for men and not for women. They think that it is an opportunity to unilaterally give points only to men. I think opportunities should be guaranteed equally.”

“So, does that mean women should also serve in the military?”

“Yes. Leave military service to the individual’s free will and give points to military servicemen regardless of gender, or, conversely, make all men and women serve in the military.”

The Minister of National Defense was sensitive.

“Who would enlist if only men and women who receive points serve? A conscription system, not a volunteer system, is a fatal blow to security for us, a divided country that must maintain more than 500,000 soldiers.”

The President said.

“It is true that we have had a patriarchal culture. But this is how I think about gender equality in real life, not in theory: opportunity is equal, compensation is based on ability.”

Everyone nodded.

“We will give women the opportunity to serve in the military and give them the same points. Instead, if they do not meet a certain level, they will be discharged and will not receive points.”

The Minister of National Defense said.

“I also agree to discharge those who do not meet the standards. But in that case, I don’t think it is necessary to make the military service period for women equal to that of men.”

“What do you mean?”

“In my experience, there will definitely be more dropouts from women than men in terms of physical strength. The military will be anxious about accidents involving female soldiers, and there will be side effects of assigning them to comfortable positions. It’s like taking care of a troublemaker in advance because they might cause an accident. If female soldiers occupy comfortable positions and are discharged only after 3 years, it is an unfair treatment for men and weakens the overall military power. This is the reality that the Ministry of National Defense will face. Shortening the service period based on strict education evaluation is realistic.”

“I know what you mean. That happened to Israeli female soldiers too.”

During Chairman Wang’s time, Israeli mandatory service became a problem for female soldiers, as it weakened combat power.

The President said.

“Then, how about shortening the female soldier support service to give them an opportunity, but creating a military training program so that ability evaluation can come out during that time?”

The Minister of National Defense replied.

“I think that’s the right thing to do, Your Excellency.”

*

It was summarized as follows at the cabinet meeting through a public hearing.

– Refrain from gender-discriminatory remarks in the workplace.

– Prohibit discrimination against women for the sole reason that they are women, even if they have the same score.

– Men of eligible age are conscripted into military service in the same way as now, and women receive 6 months of basic military education and training only if they want to. Only women who have passed 6 months of military education are given the same military service points as men.

– Military service points are drastically reduced from the current 5 points to 2 points out of 100 points.

– Working women are required to serve as civil defense members in the company.

– The military service point system is mandatory in public companies, and private companies implement it autonomously.

Although military service points have been reduced, they are still a decisive variable in civil service exams where successful candidates are determined by decimal points.

This was the reaction of women’s groups.

“6 months is doable!”

This was because 6 months was the minimum service period for male short-term soldiers (defense soldiers).

However, there was a difference in training intensity.

*

Nonsan Training Center.

Women in their 20s and 30s who volunteered for 6 months of service entered the training center for the first time and underwent physical fitness tests.

The drill sergeant said to the female trainee.

“Two! Three… more, more, more~”

“I can’t do it, drill sergeant, huh, huh!”

“Three push-ups!”

As a result of the physical fitness test, only 3% barely exceeded the standard.

The drill sergeant shouted.

“There will be a second test in the same event in 4 weeks. If you fail then, you will be discharged. Improve your physical strength in your spare time.”

In the first year, the pass rate in the 8-week basic physical fitness and recruit training evaluation, including a 100km march at the same level as the male soldiers, was only 3%.

Only 1% remained after the specialty training was over.

The pass rate of female soldiers serving for 6 months increased slightly every year in proportion to women’s participation in social activities.

The military service point system, which aims at equal opportunity and compensation proportional to ability, was referenced by many private companies as a personnel evaluation method.