Junior doctors who had resigned have returned to training hospitals as of Monday, coinciding with the launch of a new resident doctors’ labor union.

The newly formed Korean Resident Doctors’ Union said it would cover all training hospitals nationwide and operate as a sector-specific labor organization.

Yu Cheong-jun, who leads trainee doctors at Chung-Ang University Hospital and is a member of the Korean Interns and Residents Association’s emergency committee, was elected as its inaugural chair.

In a founding declaration, the union vowed to break the cycle of harsh working conditions and rebuild a crumbling healthcare system, stating residents would now speak collectively “under the name of a labor union.”

It criticized current training conditions as structurally flawed, arguing they violate residents’ rights and threaten patient safety, and pledged to fight for fair treatment, share responsibility for sustainable healthcare and prioritize public health.

The union will hold its inaugural ceremony on September 14 at the Korean Medical Association headquarters in Seoul.