Thousands of health workers took to the streets against the president, who vetoed a measure approved by Parliament (with the support of the opposition), but against which doctors are, who fear chaos in health care. Nursing staff say that fears are unfounded, the country needs more health centers to cope with the rapidly aging population.
Seoul () – Tens of thousands of South Korean nurses went on strike today against the veto that President Yoon Suk Yeol imposed on May 16 on a bill that would have improved their wages and working conditions. Yoon made this decision in response to protests from doctors and nursing assistants who claimed that the measure would harm their work by creating confusion.
Separate from the Medical Services Law, the Nursing Services Law was passed last month with the support of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), which controls more than half of the 300 seats in the National Assembly. The new law responds to the concerns of nurses, who argue that the Medical Services Law considers them subservient to doctors. Due to ambiguities in the current legal framework, nurses say they are often forced to perform tasks outside of their job description, resulting in overwork and difficulties in providing quality care to patients . Doctors countered by calling the nursing law “malicious” as it would allow nurses to replace doctors in their roles, causing confusion in hospitals and endangering patient safety. For their part, nurses argue that these concerns are unfounded: the country needs more care centers to cope with its rapidly aging population.
Faced with the open conflict, Yoon exercised the right of presidential veto: according to the Korean Constitution, in this case a law must obtain a two-thirds majority of the National Assembly in a new reading to be enacted. Otherwise, the bill is eliminated.
“The nursing law has caused too many conflicts,” Yoon argued during the government session in which he announced his intention to veto it: “The intention to separate nursing from medical institutions has created anxiety among people regarding their health. It is unfortunate that the Assembly has not been able to resolve this situation”.
However, the nursing staff have no intention of giving up and accuse the president of betraying a promise he made to them during the election campaign. For this reason they have demonstrated today. For the moment, however, the impact of the strike has been limited: most of the protesters used their vacations or reduced their working hours, and the main hospitals continued to function normally.
