The government has warned that legal action will be taken against striking cement truckers who fail to follow the government’s return-to-work order issued earlier on Tuesday.

Interior and safety minister Lee Sang-min in a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Wednesday said that the nation’s logistics system, a key basis of the economy, is in serious crisis due to the week-long strike.

Lee said truckers in the cement industry who fail to return to work without reasonable cause will be slapped with penalties under relevant laws, and strikers that engage in illegal activities, such as damaging trucks, will be dealt with in accordance with the government’s zero-tolerance policy.

He said the government will work with related agencies and local governments to actively mobilize emergency transportation equipment and personnel, while seeking to minimize potential damage to key industries, including refined oil, steel and automobiles.

The minister’s comments come one day after President Yoon Suk Yeol and his Cabinet green-lit a government order that would force striking cement truckers to return to work. Two days earlier, the government raised the crisis alert level regarding inland cargo shipping from “alert” to “serious,” the highest in the four-tier system.