SYNOPSIS
A new documentary by Park Jeong-suk who has been consistently dealing with labor issues in her works since 1996, Salt - Korean Railway Women Workers Story shares the same interests with Parallel(2000) which was about women restaurant employees. It focuses on the specific work environment of women workers at the Korean National Railway, exploring the multi-layered issues of poor work environment, pregnancy, childcare, vacations, and health.
In particular, the film poignantly raises questions on the genderless and gender-blinded labor rules of the Korean National Railway that refuse to take into consideration the specific conditions and requests of women laborers-let alone the general issues such as the dangerous work environment and frequent overtime. The film also reveals the shocking truth that due to this unbelievably poor work environment, more than 50% of women railway workers have experienced a miscarriage. As the director says, Salt is a story about women whose roles are similar to salt which is indispensable but hardly considered so, and moreover, a story about women who struggle for a better world.
(Kwon Eun-sun)
PROGRAM NOTE
A new documentary by Park Jeong-suk who has been consistently dealing with labor issues in her works since 1996, Salt - Korean Railway Women Workers Story shares the same interests with Parallel(2000) which was about women restaurant employees. It focuses on the specific work environment of women workers at the Korean National Railway, exploring the multi-layered issues of poor work environment, pregnancy, childcare, vacations, and health.
In particular, the film poignantly raises questions on the genderless and gender-blinded labor rules of the Korean National Railway that refuse to take into consideration the specific conditions and requests of women laborers-let alone the general issues such as the dangerous work environment and frequent overtime. The film also reveals the shocking truth that due to this unbelievably poor work environment, more than 50% of women railway workers have experienced a miscarriage. As the director says, Salt is a story about women whose roles are similar to salt which is indispensable but hardly considered so, and moreover, a story about women who struggle for a better world.
(Kwon Eun-sun)