When Korean Legislative Elections were around the corner in early 2024, the incumbent govenenent announced an increase in the number of seats at medical programs in SK as a populist Hail Mary.
Yet they did NOT increase the number of resident positions and left reimbursement rates at the same level as almost a decade ago. Also, the average doctor in SK works 100 hours a week instead of 60 like in the US.
This meant that both junior and senior doctors ended up having to work more (they'd need to increase the number of medical students per training doctor post-degree) while still earning their existing salary and needing to pay off college loans (which in Korea are state school level despite incomes being a fraction of the US).
Instead of negotiating with doctors, the government decided to instead revoke striking doctor's medical licenses.
There is now a significant brain drain as Korean doctors look to immigrate to Japan or the US.
And this is how a strike was resolved against white collar workers.
Blue collar unskilled workers have even less leverage, because you can always import a "Trainee" from Vietnam, Phillipines, Indonesia, Nepal, etc for a pittance.
Being a doctor in Japan has too many requirements and has a strong network tied to schools with the "good old boys".
If they have English skills, many aim for America and other Anglophone nations. But ironically, the American Medical Association pushed for caps on schools and residencies like their Korean counterparts and it was rather humorous seeing trainee doctors complaining about this.
