Representatives of South Korean companies operating in the inter-Korean Gaeseong Industrial Complex are visiting North Korea in an effort to resolve an ongoing wage dispute.
 
The chief delegate of the representatives' group Jeong Gi-seob said ahead of entering the North at around 9:15 Tuesday morning that the delegation is making the trip with hopes that government authorities can address the wage issue through amicable conversation.
 
Jeong said the North’s request for a wage hike should not be regarded as unreasonable and is an issue that can be resolved through dialogue. He said the problem lies with the discontinuation of inter-Korean dialogue and distrust between the two sides.

On February 24, the North unilaterally informed Seoul of its decision to raise the minimum monthly salary of North Korean workers by five-point-18 percent to 74 dollars beginning in March.
 
The South Korean firms in the complex are set to pay workers’ wages for March on Friday. The South Korean government has asked the firms not to meet the North’s demands and instead pay wages based on existing standards.