Abstract

Taking the “Cheongju Urban Industrial Mission (Cheongju UIM)” as a representative case, this study focuses on the labor movement based on industrial mission work that unfolded in regions outside the Seoul metropolitan area during the 1970s. The purpose of this study is to elucidate the formation and development of Cheongju UIM from the perspective of resource mobilization theory, as well as the significance of its activities within the Cheongju labor movement. Cheongju UIM was formed amid the repressive political climate of the 1970s and the evolving landscape of urban industrial mission society activities. The UIM took on a concrete form through the combination of new leadership under Jeong Jin-dong, the composition of its worker members, funding through external aid, the organization’s legal status—which allowed for a certain degree of political autonomy—and material resources such as a public office that was easily accessible to workers and served as a gathering place, alongside a value orientation toward “Missio Dei” centered on humanization and God’s justice. Cheongju UIM served as a supporting organization on the periphery of the labor movement in the Chungcheongbuk-do region and its significance can be assessed as follows: first, its contribution to the consciousness-raising and organization of workers; second, support in securing workers’ right to survival for their human dignity; and third, the establishment of a network enabling solidarity and support for workers.