Unionized medical workers ended their general strike on Friday a day after launching the walkout to demand an increase in nursing personnel and the reinforcement of public healthcare. 

In a news conference in Seoul, the Korean Health and Medical Workers' Union said it ended the strike at 5 p.m. Friday after comprehensively taking into account such factors as patients’ safety and inconvenience as well as the health ministry's position. 

The union said that with the two-day walkout, it had confirmed the validity of its demands, gained the public’s trust and created a social consensus. 

The union was quick to add, however, that it would launch another general strike if negotiations with the health ministry on remaining contentious issues fail to produce a meaningful alternative. It vowed to swiftly reach agreements with individual hospitals to normalize the treatment of patients.