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A U G U S T 2 0 0 6 W W W . C A L N U R S E S . O R G R E G I S T E R E D N U R S E 17 some 140 facilities, many of them university-affiliated or public hospitals. KHMWU's next goal was to win the right to bargain national con- tracts for all members at a single table. Of course, hospital employers wanted to negotiate contracts separately. For more than five years, the union diligently pushed for central bargaining, and the campaign culminated in a historic, two-week nationwide strike in 2004. By the end of the strike, the members had gotten what they want- ed—central bargaining—as well as winning a five-day instead of six- day workweek and increased funding from the government for 5,000 additional RNs. The healthcare workers' victory was all the more amazing consid- ering that, by law, they are not allowed to strike unless a mediation court says they can. According to Lee, the courts almost never permit such actions, so strikes are, for all intents and purposes, illegal, and strikers can face arrest and termination. "But we believe collective action is our basic right, so we ignore the laws," said Lee. And when KHMWU members go on strike, they mean business. Instead of individual picket lines at hospitals, as many as 10,000 members converge in the plaza in front of the "Blue House" in Seoul (South Korea's equivalent of the White House) to camp out and stage mass public demonstrations. They often wear matching outfits and colorful headbands proclaiming "Not money, but life" and "Unity and struggle." Many of KHMWU's members are also fairly young (the average age of RN members is 26, the average age overall is 33.5, and almost half are unmarried), so the events resemble huge political, music, and dance festivals for youth, as members chant, eat, live, and play together for the duration of the strike. During a strike, it's also tradition for union leaders to get their heads shaved in an often emotional ceremony that symbolizes their resolve and sacrifice. In one video showing this ritual, several female nurse leaders, including the president, sat steely-faced as their hair was clipped off, then sobbed as they hugged other members after- wards. Besides the leaders, some KHMWU members volunteer to get their heads shaved to show support and solidarity. "The head shaving thing, we strongly encourage it," joked Mi Ja Kang, a 17-year regis- tered nurse who left her job to work for the union when she realized that nurses would never provide the best care for patients unless con- ditions improved. Indeed, Kang said one reason KHMWU's nurse members are so young is that the patient load and intensity of work is so great it caus- es many RNs to burn out. RNs starting families also leave the profes- sion because they are unable to find or pay for childcare. An experienced RN in South Korea typically makes $50,000 U.S., while younger or starting RNs typically make $25,000 to $30,000 U.S. Kang and Lee said the KHMWU delegation was inspired and encouraged by the goals their union shared with CNA/NNOC. "We believe that, like air and water, healthcare is a basic necessity and right," said Lee. "Global capital is forcing a for-profit healthcare model in South Korea." Not without a fight from the Korean Health and Medical Workers Union. ■ Lucia Hwang is editor of Registered Nurse. Abroad workers union gets results with gutsy tactics. by lucia hwang