Organizational Structure

LRC's organization

• The LRC is composed of the National Labor Relations Commission (“NLRC”), 13 Regional Labor Relations Commissions (“RLRCs”), and the Special Labor Relations Commission (“SLRC”). 
The NLRC and the RLRCs are established under the control of the Minister of Employment and Labor (Labor Relations Commission Act (“LRCA”), Article 2, Para. 2 and 3), and the SLRC is set up under the control of the head of the central administrative agency which has jurisdiction over specific issues. However, the Jeju Provincial Labor Relations Commission among the RLRCs came to belong to the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province instead of the Ministry of Employment and Labor as of July 1, 2006. Currently, as an SLRC, Seafarers’ Labor Relations Commission is established under the control of the Minister of Oceans and Fisheries (Seafarers’ Act, Article 4).

Names, locations and jurisdictions of the RLRCs

LRC members

Alloted number of the LRC members

* The NLRC has additional seven public interest members for the mediation of public officials’ labor relations.

• The LRC is composed of workers’ members, employers’ members and public interest members (LRCA, Article 6, Para. 1).
The number of the LRC members is determined by a Presidential decree, taking account of the workload. The numbers of workers’ members and employers’ members are between 10 and 50, respectively, and those of public interest members are between 10 and 70. Workers’ members and employers’ members should be equal in number (LRCA, Article 6, Para. 2).

• Workers’ members and employers’ members are appointed from among those who are recommended by labor unions and the employers’ association, respectively. For the NLRC, they are appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the Minister of Employment and Labor, and for the RLRCs, they are appointed by the chairperson of the NLRC upon the recommendation of the chairperson of the relevant RLRC (LRCA, Article 6, Para. 3).

• In the case of public interest members, labor unions and the employers’ association as well as the chairperson of the relevant LRC recommend candidates, and labor unions and the employers’ association take turns in excluding candidates who they don’t see fit. The candidates remaining after the exclusion process become those who are eligible for public interest members. Out of those members, in the case of the NLRC, public interest members are appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the Minister of Employment and Labor, and in the case of the RLRCs, they are appointed by the chairperson of the NLRC upon the recommendation of the chairperson of the relevant RLRC (LRCA, Article 6, Para. 4)

Secretariats

Alloted number of public officials in secretariats of the LRC

* Including one chairperson of Jeju RLRC and 9 officials of Grade 5 and below

Chairperson

• The chairperson of the NLRC is appointed by the President according to the proposal of the Minister of Employment and Labor from among persons eligible for public interest member of the NLRC, and the chairperson of an RLRC is appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the chairperson of the NLRC and according to the proposal of the Minister of Employment and Labor, from among persons eligible for public interest members of the RLRC (LRCA, Article 9, Para. 2).
The chairperson of an LRC becomes a public interest member of the LRC, and may take charge of the cases of adjudication, discrimination redress, and mediation (LRCA, Article 9, Para. 4).
The chairperson of the NLRC is, by its position, a public official in political service (LRCA, Article 9, Para. 3), and exercises general control over budgets, personnel affairs, education and training, and other administrative matters of the NLRC and the RLRCs, and directs and supervises the public officials falling under his/her jurisdiction (LRCA, Article 4, Para. 2). 
In addition, the NLRC chairperson has the right to recommend the chairpersons and standing members of RLRCs (LRCA, Article 9, Para. 2 / Article 11, Para. 1), and the right to appoint the RLRC members (LRCA, Article 6, Para. 3, 4).

Standing members

• Each LRC has standing members of which the minimum and maximum numbers are prescribed by a presidential decree. They are appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the chairperson of the NLRC and according to the proposal of the Minister of Employment and Labor, from among those eligible for public interest membership of the concerned LRC. (LRCA, Article 11, Para. 1, 3). The standing members become public interest members, and may take charge of adjudication, discrimination redress, and mediation (LRCA, Article 11, Para. 2).
Currently, there are two standing members in the NLRC, three in the Seoul RLRC, one in the Busan RLRC, and two in the Gyeonggi RLRC.

Administrative bureau

• The chairperson of the NLRC is appointed by the President according to the proposal of the Minister of Employment and Labor from among persons eligible for public interest member of the NLRC, and the chairperson of an RLRC is appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the chairperson of the NLRC and according to the proposal of the Minister of Employment and Labor, from among persons eligible for public interest members of the RLRC (LRCA, Article 9, Para. 2).
The chairperson of an LRC becomes a public interest member of the LRC, and may take charge of the cases of adjudication, discrimination redress, and mediation (LRCA, Article 9, Para. 4).
The chairperson of the NLRC is, by its position, a public official in political service (LRCA, Article 9, Para. 3), and exercises general control over budgets, personnel affairs, education and training, and other administrative matters of the NLRC and the RLRCs, and directs and supervises the public officials falling under his/her jurisdiction (LRCA, Article 4, Para. 2).
In addition, the NLRC chairperson has the right to recommend the chairpersons and standing members of RLRCs (LRCA, Article 9, Para. 2 / Article 11, Para. 1), and the right to appoint the RLRC members (LRCA, Article 6, Para. 3, 4).