Hyundai union calls for work stoppage next week

SEOUL, July 5 (Reuters) - Unionised employees of Hyundai Motor Co (005380.KS: Quote, Profile, Research) will walk off the job for four hours next week to push for a pay increase, the auto maker's union said on Saturday.

The latest labour action follows a two-hour walk off on Wednesday by unionised employees at Hyundai Motor and other South Korean car makers, in a move aimed at having the government scrap a U.S. beef import deal.

The union will decide by Monday whether next week's walk-off will take place on Tuesday or Thursday.

"Our initial plan was to focus on negotiations after the partial strike last week, but with the Labour Ministry and the prosecutors saying our move is illegal, we have decided to go on another walk-off," said Chang Kyu-ho, a spokesman at Hyundai Motor's union.

On Friday, unionised workers of GM Daewoo Automotive and Technology Co, a unit of General Motors (GM.N: Quote, Profile, Research), said they would partially stop work on July 8. [ID:nSEO335491]

Rallies against the unpopular beef deal, struck last month, have caused a crisis for President Lee Myung-bak's four-month-old government.

The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, an umbrella labour group comprising auto makers and metal workers, has been part of some of the most violent protests in the country and also called for a massive street protest later in the day. (Reporting by Angela Moon; Editing by Ben Tan)