ILO 결사의 자유 원칙의 국내법적 수용 과제 ― 결사의 자유 위원회 권고 이행을 중심으로 ―

The Republic of Korea has not ratified either the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948 (No. 87), or the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98), since it became the member State of the International Labour Organization in 1991. The Government has promised to ratify Conventions Nos 87 and 98 since the ILO High-Level Tripartite Mission visited the country in 1998. Meanwhile, the ILO Committee on Freedom of Association (CFA) has examined several cases which were complained by Korean trade unions, and has requested the Government to ensure freedom of association. This article begins with the fundamental principle that freedom of association is a basic human right, as the ILO Constitution as well as the 1998 Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work has affirmed. Therefore, all members, even if they have not ratified the relevant Conventions, have an obligation to promote and to realize the principles concerning freedom of association. To develop this argument, this article analyses the cases submitted to the CFA by Korean trade unions, and reviews the Recommendations of the CFA and the implementation by the Government, in particular, regarding the Case Nos 1865 and 2602. Such urgent issues are examined, as the scope of “workers” who have the right to organise without distinction whatsoever; the effective recognition of the right to collective bargaining with regard to work arrangement involving multiple entities; the unification of the bargaining channel and freedom of association; and, objective of the strike and the sanction by reason of “obstruction of business” under the criminal law. In conclusion, this article recalls the legal responsibility of the Government to respect freedom of association and to implement the recommendations and requests of the ILO supervisory bodies, even before ratifying the core ILO Conventions.