"The Justification of Overwork Is Over": National Residents' Union Officially Launched

"We will fight to protect the legitimate rights and dignified lives of residents."

Residents undergoing training to become specialists at hospitals have established a nationwide labor union, declaring, "The justification of overwork is over," and officially launched on the 14th.

The National Residents' Union held an inauguration ceremony at the auditorium on the first basement floor of the Korean Medical Association building in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, and announced its launch, stating, "We have established the union to break the cycle of overwork and rectify the collapsing medical system."

In its launch declaration, the Residents' Union stated, "The reality that residents have endured out of a sense of duty has been a working environment and deprivation of educational rights that disregard not only the Labor Standards Act but also the Special Act on Residents," and questioned, "Is it justifiable for residents to be consumed as cheap labor while their educational and human rights are deprived?"

They added, "The medical system, sustained by the price of residents' overwork and deprivation of human rights, can no longer be maintained. We will no longer be consumables for hospitals in silence."

They stated, "We will fight to protect the legitimate rights and dignified lives of residents," and "We will prioritize patient safety and public health and share responsibility with society for the sustainable development of the Korean medical system."

They further added, "Residents nationwide will connect with each other, align with society, and move towards a healthy medical system."

Cheongjun Yu, the first union president and a resident at Chung-Ang University Hospital, stated in his inaugural address, "The Residents' Union is not just an organization for our improved treatment, but a starting point for protecting patient safety and creating a healthy and sustainable medical system," emphasizing, "Guaranteeing residents' labor rights is tantamount to patient safety."

The Residents' Union is demanding a reduction in residents' working hours, guaranteed legal rest periods, limits on the number of patients per person, guaranteed safety for pregnant and postpartum residents, measures for radiation exposure, and an end to verbal and physical abuse within hospitals. They also urged the prompt amendment of the "Act on the Improvement of Residents' Training Environment and Status" (Residents' Act), which includes measures to improve training environments such as reducing residents' training hours.

They have decided to operate a reporting center to identify instances where residents' legitimate rights are infringed upon and to conduct periodic fact-finding surveys.

 (Seoul=Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Jandi = The National Residents' Union held an inauguration ceremony at the auditorium on the first basement floor of the Korean Medical Association building in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the 14th, declaring its launch with the statement, "We have established the union to break the cycle of overwork and rectify the collapsing medical system." 2025.09.14. jandi@yna.co.kr