Workbear재주넘는곰
대법원 90누1731

Revocation of Disposition Rejecting Acceptance of Labor Union Establishment Report노동조합설립신고수리취소처분취소

Decided1993. 05. 25. Court대법원Workers (caddies) won — Supreme Court reversed and remanded, recognizing caddies as workers under the Trade Union Act
AI-generated English translation (summary, key points, decision summary and full text) for reference only — not an official translation and without legal effect. The Korean original below is authoritative.
AI Easy read — AI summary of this decision
AI-generated summary for reference only — the Korean original below is authoritative.

Golf course caddies attempted to establish a labor union, but their registration report was rejected on the grounds that they were not 'workers' under the Trade Union Act (노동조합법). The Supreme Court reversed this decision, ruling that the caddies were in a relationship of employment subordination (사용종속관계) with the golf course company and therefore qualified as workers eligible to form a union.

Key takeaways
  • CaseGolf course caddies tried to form a labor union, but their registration was rejected on the ground that they were not considered employees.
  • OutcomeThe Supreme Court ruled that regardless of the contract's formal type, workers are entitled to union rights if a genuine relationship of direction and supervision exists in practice.
  • LessonEven freelancers or independent contractors may be legally recognized as employees if they are, in substance, subject to the company's direction and control.
Issues
  • Whether golf course caddies qualify as 'workers' under the Trade Union Act (노동조합법)
  • The criteria for determining the existence of an employment subordination relationship (사용종속관계)
  • The relationship between the formal type of a labor supply contract and actual worker status
Key reasoning

Under the Trade Union Act, a 'worker' is defined as a person who performs labor under a relationship of employment subordination (사용종속관계) and receives compensation in return, regardless of the formal type of contract used. Courts must look beyond the label of the contract (e.g., service contract, independent contractor agreement) and examine the actual substance of the relationship, including the degree of direction and supervision by the employer, whether the compensation paid is genuinely a wage for labor performed, and the nature and content of the work itself. In this case, the golf course caddies worked under the direction and supervision of the golf course company and received 'caddie fees' as compensation for their labor. Based on these substantive factors, the Court concluded that the caddies fell within the definition of 'worker' under the Trade Union Act, irrespective of how their contractual relationship was formally characterized.

Summary of Decision (English, AI translation)

[가]. Under the Trade Union Act (노동조합법), an employee refers to a person who performs labor under a relationship of subordination to another and receives wages or the like as consideration for living. As long as such a relationship of subordination to another exists, it does not matter what form the labor supply contract takes—whether employment, contract for work, mandate, or an unnamed contract—and the relationship of subordination is determined by the substantive relationship of the labor, such as whether there is a relationship of direction and supervision between the employer and the person providing labor, whether the remuneration is in the nature of consideration for labor, and the nature and content of the labor.

[나]. A case holding that a golf course caddie falls under the category of an employee under the Trade Union Act (노동조합법).

Full text (English, AI translation) 9,397 chars

[Plaintiff, Appellant] Yuseong Tourism Development Country Club Labor Union, Litigation Representative Attorney Yoon Jong-hyun and 3 others

[Defendant, Appellee] Head of Yuseong-gu, Daejeon Metropolitan City, Litigation Representative Attorney Song Myung-kwan

[Lower Court Judgment]

Seoul High Court, Judgment of February 1, 1990, Case No. 89Gu9762

[Order]

The judgment of the court below is reversed, and the case is remanded to the Seoul High Court.

[Reasoning]

The grounds of appeal are examined.

(1) The court below found the following facts: Non-party Yuseong Tourism Development Co., Ltd. (hereinafter "the non-party company"), while operating the Yuseong Country Club golf course located in Deokmyeong-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon, maintains under its umbrella approximately 300 caddies who assist visitors playing golf; the company mainly places recruitment advertisements in newspapers, has applicants submit resumes and copies of resident registration, selects and secures caddies, and after a certain period of preparation, has them serve as regular caddies; the caddies have never entered into any form of employment contract with the non-party company, but merely follow the company's instructions to form a group with a specific visitor during the round, carrying the visitor's golf bag, taking out clubs at the visitor's request, retrieving balls that have gone into the woods or wiping off balls soiled with dirt, and repairing divots caused by swinging clubs (repairing divots is an obligation of the player under the rules of golf) — in other words, performing tasks that the visitor would otherwise have to perform himself; in return, the caddies receive the caddie fee of KRW 5,000 that is paid together with the green fee by the visitor (after this incident, the caddies receive it directly from the visitor), and after the round, receive any gratuity the visitor voluntarily gives, but receive no wages or pay of any kind, under any name, from the non-party company; nor does the non-party company involve itself at all in the amount of the caddies' income, nor does it withhold wage income tax; the non-party company does not implement employment rules with respect to the caddies, but since the caddies earn income by using the golf course facilities, it was necessary to maintain minimum order within the facility and, for the purpose of improving the quality of service to visitors, to exercise a degree of control over the caddies; accordingly, the company assigned a caddie master to ensure strict adherence to working hours, to provide the education necessary for assisting in play, and to have the caddies clean facilities soiled by visitors, and where a caddie violated the company's instructions, imposed sanctions such as suspension from work or refusal of assignment; although the caddies were subject to the above-described control, apart from that there was in principle no relationship of subordination between them and the non-party company; once the scheduled assistance for the visitor's round was completed, the caddies were free to come and go as they pleased; and the caddie team-leader system, whereby senior or exemplary caddies were made to check attendance among themselves on an autonomous basis, is difficult to regard as forming an intermediate management structure of the company. Based on these findings, the court below held that it would be more reasonable to view the caddies as having entered into an employment or work-contract relationship with the visitors, through the intermediation of the non-party company, and as engaging in the business of assisting visitors in their rounds, rather than as having entered into an employment contract with the non-party company; and that although the caddies are subject to a certain degree of direction and supervision by the non-party company with respect to attendance times, work conditions, and repair of divots or cleaning arising in the course of visitors' rounds, such direction and supervision is limited to the minimum scope necessary to maintain order incidental to the use of the golf course facilities, and this alone cannot lead to a different characterization of the legal relationship among the caddies, the non-party company, and the visitors; the court below thus held, in effect, that the caddies are not employees of the non-party company.

(2)
Article 3 of the Trade Union Act (노동조합법) provides that the subjects of a trade union are workers, and
Article 4 of the same Act provides that "worker" means a person who lives on wages, salary, or other income equivalent thereto, regardless of the type of occupation.
A "worker" under the Trade Union Act means a person who performs labor under a relationship of subordination to another, and who lives by receiving wages, etc., in return therefor; so long as such a relationship of subordination to another exists, it does not matter whether the form of the labor-supply contract in question is employment, a work contract, mandate, an unnamed contract, or any other form; and whether such a relationship of subordination exists is to be determined by the substantive realities of the labor relationship, including whether there exists a relationship of direction and supervision between the employer and the person supplying labor, whether the remuneration is in the nature of consideration for labor, and the nature and content of the labor; so long as such a relationship of subordination is recognized, the person may be regarded as a worker under the Trade Union Act.

According to the record: ① the caddies belonging to the non-party company, in performing the task of assisting visitors in their rounds, receive instructions from staff of the non-party company such as the caddie master; their attendance times are also set by the non-party company according to an assigned numerical order; they are required to work early-morning shifts and, even on days when the course is closed, to report for work to receive training or clean the golf course facilities; thus they must supply labor under the direction and supervision of the non-party company; and where a caddie violates the work instructions or decisions of the non-party company side, such as the caddie master, or is absent without leave, etc., sanctions are imposed as penalties—such as suspension from work for a fixed period or refusal of assignment—which deal a decisive blow to the caddies' income; and the caddies are controlled through a caddie team leader appointed by the non-party company side. ② Moreover, upon completion of the task of assisting a visitor, the caddie receives remuneration, i.e., the caddie fee, from the non-party company; although it is difficult to conclude definitively that this caddie fee constitutes "wages" under the Labor Standards Act (근로기준법), it appears that, at the time the caddie was selected and hired by the non-party company as a caddie for its golf course, there was an implicit agreement between the caddie and the non-party company that the caddie would provide labor to whichever visitor the non-party company arbitrarily designated, and would receive in return from the non-party company a fixed sum of KRW 5,000 per round as the caddie fee; such an agreement appears to closely resemble an employment contract relationship, and therefore it does not seem improper to regard the caddie fee as "other income equivalent thereto" as provided in Article 4 of the Trade Union Act (even if the method of paying the caddie fee was changed to one in which the visitor pays the caddie directly, this should be understood as follows: the non-party company, which as noted above appears to bear the obligation to pay the caddie fee, is deemed to have received the caddie fee from the visitor—who, in order to play on the non-party company's golf course, is in any event obliged to pay the caddie fee—and to have instead delegated to the visitor the task of paying the caddie fee to the caddie; accordingly, a change in the method of payment of the caddie fee cannot be regarded as changing the entity responsible for paying it). ③ In addition, in light of the nature of the caddies' work and the fact that their working hours, etc., are set by the non-party company and they are required to report for work every day, it is in practice difficult for them to take employment with another company, so that the caddies appear to be almost exclusively attached to the non-party company. In light of these circumstances, the caddies belonging to the non-party company's golf course should be regarded as being in a relationship of dependent labor with the non-party company.

Accordingly, although the above caddies may be regarded as workers under the Trade Union Act, the judgment of the court below, which held to the contrary that they are not employees of the non-party company, is unlawful in that it misapprehended the facts in violation of the rules of evidence, or erred in its understanding of the legal principles concerning the concept of "worker" under the Trade Union Act. The argument [of the appellant] is well-founded.

(3) Accordingly, the judgment of the court below is reversed and the case is remanded, and this judgment is rendered as stated in the Order by the unanimous opinion of the Justices involved.

Justice Choi Jae-ho (Presiding Justice), Bae Man-un, Kim Seok-su (Justice in Charge), Choi Jong-young

【판결요지】

가. 노동조합법상 근로자란 타인과의 사용종속관계하에서 노무에 종사하고 대가로 임금 등을 받아 생활하는 자를 말하고, 타인과 사용종속관계가 있는 한 당해 노무공급계약의 형태가 고용, 도급, 위임, 무명계약 등 어느 형태이든 상관없으며 사용종속관계는 사용자와 노무제공자 사이에 지휘 감독관계의 여부, 보수의 노무대가성 여부, 노무의 성질과 내용 등 노무의 실질관계에 의하여 결정된다.

나. 골프장 캐디가 노동조합법상 근로자에 해당한다고 본 사례.

【참조조문】

노동조합법 제4조

【참조판례】

대법원 1986.12.23. 선고 85누856 판결

【주문】·【이유】 전문 3,442자 · 펼쳐 보기

【원고, 상고인】 유성관광개발컨트리클럽노동조합 소송대리인 변호사 윤종현 외 3인

【피고, 피상고인】 대전직할시 유성구청장 소송대리인 변호사 송명관

【원심판결】 서울고등법원 1990.2.1. 선고 89구9762 판결

【주 문】

원심판결을 파기하고 사건을 서울고등법원에 환송한다.

【이 유】 상고이유를 본다.

(1) 원심은 소외 유성관광개발주식회사(이하 소외회사라 한다)가 대전 유성구 덕명동 소재 유성컨트리클럽 골프장을 운영하면서 골프장 내장객의 경기를 보조하는 캐디 300명 가량을 그 산하에 두고 있는데, 주로 신문에 모집광고를 내어 이력서, 주민등록등본을 제출케 하여 선발, 확보한 후 일정기간 준비를 시켜 정식 캐디로 종사케 한 사실, 위 캐디들은 소외회사와 어떤 형태의 근로계약도 체결한 바는 없고 단지 위 회사의 지시에 따라 특정 내장객과 조를 이루어 경기하는 동안 동인의 골프가방을 운반하고 내장객의 요구에 응하여 골프채를 꺼내 주며 숲 속에 들어간 공을 찾아 주거나 흙에 더럽혀진 공을 닦아 주는 한편 골프채를 휘두를 때 생기는 잔디파손부분을 손질하는 등 (잔디 파손부분의 손질은 골프규칙상 경기인의 의무로 되어 있다) 내장객이 하여야 할 일들을 대신하여 도와 줌으로써 내장객이 그린피를 낼 때 함께 입금시킨 캐디피 금 5,000원을 전달 받는 외에(이 사건 이후에는 내장객으로부터 직접 수령한다) 경기종료 후 위 내장객이 임의로 주는 봉사료를 지급받을 뿐 소외회사로부터 어떤 명목의 임금이나 급료도 지급받지 않고 있으며 소외회사 역시 캐디들의 수입의 다과에 전혀 관여하지 않을 뿐 아니라 갑근세 원천징수도 하지 않고 있는 사실, 소외회사는 캐디들에 대하여 취업규칙을 시행함이 없이 다만 그들이 골프장 시설을 이용하여 수입을 올리는 만큼 시설 내에서의 최소한의 질서유지가 필요하고 또한 내장객에 대한 봉사의 질적 향상을 위해서도 캐디를 통제할 필요성이 있었으므로 캐디마스터를 두어 근무시간을 엄수케 하고 경기보조에 필요한 교육과 내장객으로 인하여 더럽혀진 시설의 청소를 시키되 회사의 지시를 위반하였을 때에는 벌칙으로 근무정지, 배치거부 등의 제재를 가하고 있는 사실, 위 캐디들은 위에서 보는 바와 같은 통제를 받기는 하였으나 그 외에는 원칙적으로 소외회사와 주종관계가 없으며 예정된 시간표에 따른 내장객의 경기보조업무가 끝나면, 출퇴근이 자유로울 뿐 아니라 한편 캐디조장제도는 캐디 중의 고참이나 모범적으로 근무하는 사람들로 하여금 자치적으로 출근상태를 점검케 하는 것으로서 이를 가리켜 회사의 중간관리체계를 형성하고 있다고 보기는 어려운 사실을 인정한 다음, 위 캐디들은 소외회사와 근로계약을 체결하였다고 보기보다는 오히려 소외회사의 중개로 내장객과 고용 내지 도급계약을 체결하고 내장객의 경기를 보조하는 업무에 종사한다고 봄이 상당하다 할 것이고 다만 캐디들이 소외회사로부터 출근시간, 근무상태, 내장객의 경기과정에서 생긴 잔디 파손부분의 손질이나 청소 등에 관하여 일정한 범위 내에서 지시감독을 받고 있는 것은 위 골프장시설을 이용함에 부수하여 질서를 유지하는 데 필요한 최소한의 범위에 국한되어 있는 만큼 그것만으로는 위 캐디들과 소외회사 및 내장객 사이의 법률관계를 달리 볼 수는 없다고 할 것이므로 위 캐디들은 소외회사의 근로자가 아니라는 취지로 판시하였다.

(2) 노동조합법 제3조는 노동조합의 주체는 근로자임을 명시하고 있고, 같은 법 제4조는 근로자라 함은 직업의 종류를 불문하고 임금, 급료 기타 이에 준하는 수입에 의하여 생활하는 자를 말한다고 규정하고 있는바, 노동조합법상 근로자란 타인과의 사용종속관계하에서 노무에 종사하고 그 대가로 임금등을 받아 생활하는 자를 말한다고 할 것이고, 타인과 사용종속관계가 있는 한 당해 노무공급계약의 형태가 고용, 도급, 위임, 무명계약 등 어느 형태이든 상관 없다고 보아야 할 것이며, 그 사용종속관계는 사용자와 노무제공자 사이에 지휘 감독관계의 여부, 보수의 노무대가성 여부, 노무의 성질과 내용 등 그 노무의 실질관계에 의하여 결정된다 할 것이고, 그 사용종속관계가 인정되는 한 노동조합법상의 근로자로 보아도 무방할 것이다.

기록에 의하면 ① 소외회사에 소속된 캐디들은 내장객의 경기보조업무를 수행함에 있어서 캐디마스터등 소외회사의 직원의 지시를 받으며, 출근에 있어서도 소외회사에 의하여 지정된 번호순서에 따라 출근시간이 정하여지며, 새벽근무도 해야 하고, 휴장일에도 출근하여 교육이나 골프장 시설청소 등을 해야 하는 등 소외회사의 지휘감독하에 노무를 제공하여야 하며, 캐디가 캐디마스터 등 소외회사측의 업무지시나 결정에 위반하거나, 무단결근 등의 경우에는 벌칙으로서 캐디들의 수입에 결정적인 타격을 주는 일정기간 근무정지나 배치거부 등의 제재를 가하고 있고, 소외회사측에 의하여 지명된 캐디조장에 의하여 캐디를 통제하고 있는 점, ② 또한 캐디는 내장객 보조업무가 종료되면 소외회사로부터 보수 즉 캐디피를 지급받는 바, 위 캐디피는 근로기준법상의 임금이라고 단정하기는 어렵지만 캐디가 소외회사에 의하여 소외회사의 골프장 캐디로 선발·채용될 때에 캐디와 소외회사 사이에 캐디는 소외회사가 임의로 지정하는 내장객에게 노무제공을 하기로 하고 그 대가로 소외회사로부터 캐디피로서 1경기당 일정한 금원인 금 5,000원을 지급받기로 하는 묵시적인 약정이 있는 것으로 엿보이고, 이와 같은 약정은 고용계약관계에 근사하다고 보이므로 캐디피를 노동조합법 제4조 소정의 “기타 이에 준하는 수입”으로 못볼 바도 아니라고 보여지는 점(캐디피의 지급방법을 내장객이 캐디에게 직접 지급하는 방법으로 변경하였다고 해도 이는 위에 보인 바와 같이 캐디피의 지급의무가 있는 것으로 보이는 소외회사가 소외회사의 골프장에서 경기에 임하려면 어차피 캐디피를 지불해야만 할 입장에 있는 내장객으로부터 캐디피를 수령한 것으로 하고 그 대신 내장객에게 캐디에 대한 캐디피의 지급을 위임한 것으로 보아야 할 것이므로 캐디피의 지급방법 변경으로 캐디피의 지급주체가 달라진다고 볼 수는 없을 것이다), ③ 그 외에도 캐디의 업무의 성질이나 소외회사에 의하여 근무시간 등이 정해져 있고 매일 출근하여야 하는 관계상 다른 회사에의 취업이 사실상 곤란하여 캐디들은 소외회사에 거의 전속되어 있다고 보여지는 점 등이 엿보이는바, 이러한 사정들에 비추어 보면 소외회사 골프장 소속의 캐디들은 소외회사와의 사이에 종속적 노동관계에 있다고 보아야 할 것이다.

따라서 위 캐디들은 이를 노동조합법상의 근로자로 볼 수 있음에도 불구하고 이와 달리 이들을 소외회사의 근로자가 아니라고 판단한 원심판결에는 채증법칙을 위배하여 사실을 그릇인정한 위법 또는 노동조합법상의 근로자에 관한 법리를 오해한 위법이 있다고 할 것이다. 논지는 이유 있다.

(3) 그러므로 원심판결을 파기환송하기로 하여 관여 법관의 일치된 의견으로 주문과 같이 판결한다.

대법관 최재호(재판장) 배만운 김석수(주심) 최종영

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