The Korea Times' front page reported that the "Make America Shipbuilding Great Again" (MASGA) project has intensified concerns about unemployment in South Korea and the United States.

Benefits of shipbuilding cooperation remain questionable.

Workers at shipyards in both South Korea and the United States are expressing concerns. After the two countries reached an agreement to strengthen cooperation in the shipbuilding sector through the so-called "Make America Shipbuilding Great Again" (MASGA) project, they worry about their job security.

This project is a $150 billion plan aimed at revitalizing American shipyards by utilizing Korean investments.

South Korean workers remain anxious about President Donald Trump's demand that South Korean companies use American labor to build ships in the United States, while American counterparts have criticized his proposal to purchase ships from South Korea.

Due to uncertainties about how South Korea will raise funds and invest in the American shipbuilding industry, calls for protecting shipyard jobs in both countries have increased. The Hyundai Heavy Industries union said on Wednesday: "Without the hands and skills of South Korean workers, the 'Make America Shipbuilding Great Again' project cannot be achieved." Some employees at the company's Ulsan shipyard are worried about potential layoffs. The Hanwha Ocean union also issued a warning about the optimistic prospects of the "Make America Shipbuilding Great Again" project.

Before the August 25th South Korea-US summit, the Korean Metal Workers' Union questioned the government's claim that the "Make America Shipbuilding Great Again" project would benefit South Korea.

The union stated: "If technology and skilled labor are transferred to the United States, the competitiveness of the domestic South Korean shipbuilding industry will decline, and the livelihoods of South Korean workers will be threatened."

Meanwhile, in the United States, MASGA is facing increasing opposition from workers and politicians who advocate maintaining the ban on foreign vessels entering domestic waterways.

"I am deeply concerned about recent reports indicating that the Trump administration wants to manufacture American ships overseas (in South Korea)," said Senator Tammy Baldwin from Wisconsin in a statement on August 28. "The President must prioritize American workers by investing in the domestic shipbuilding industry and purchasing American-made ships." Baldwin also visited Fincantieri's Ace Marine Company on August 26, meeting with union workers at the Italian company's shipyard in her state.

On August 22, Baldwin wrote to Trump, urging him to inform South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol that South Korea's investment in the shipbuilding industry should directly benefit American workers. In the letter, she stated that outsourcing shipbuilding and shipyard expansion to South Korea would be a "strategic mistake." "I urge you to prioritize creating jobs domestically and ensure that our shipyards, including South Korea's investments in American subsidiaries (such as Hanwha's shipyard in Philadelphia), have the tools needed to compete and succeed. The shipbuilding, maintenance, and repair supply chain should not be outsourced to other countries," she said.

The International Typographical Union's Metal Trades Department condemned a bipartisan proposal to relax the Jones Act.

This federal law requires that goods transported by water between U.S. ports must be carried by vessels flying the U.S. flag, built in the U.S., crewed by U.S. citizens, and owned by U.S. entities. "The Merchant Marine Partnership Act would allow ships built in foreign 'ally countries' (including South Korea) to enter U.S. coastal trade," the organization stated on August 12. "This is a notice of termination for American workers."

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1842379938164748/

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