AUTOS
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
No Pact at Hyundai: The Hyundai car company rejected an offer by striking workers to end their occupation of the country’s largest auto plant, but talks went on in the 5-day-old standoff. The government has pledged to use force to oust the 5,000 Hyundai Motor Co. workers from the plant in the industrial port of Ulsan, as part of its vow to crack down on illegal labor activities. The Hyundai dispute began Dec. 17, when the union demanded special bonuses equal to 150% of workers’ $1,600 average monthly salaries. Hyundai closed its plant last Wednesday, a day after the plant’s 30,000 workers voted to strike. Steel pipe-wielding workers then seized the plant and barricaded themselves within.
