Seoul: South Korean truckers slowly returned to work on Friday after agreeing to a deal for higher pay, ending a week-long strike that paralysed ports and dented beleaguered President Lee Myung-bak's economic growth plans, reported Reuters.
More than 7,000 of 13,000 striking truckers were still off the job on Friday and the transport of cargo remained halted for blue-chip companies including Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor as talks continued on details of a pay hike, the transport ministry said.
The truckers strike, along with a brief work stoppage this week by construction workers, cost South Korea more than $6.5 billion and saw the transport of cargo at ports grind to a halt in the export-driven country.
The deal reached on Thursday between the union that struck over soaring fuel costs and major transport companies sets a 19 percent hike in pay as a guideline for negotiations, the transport ministry said in a statement. [20/6/08]
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