article_snippet: (CNN)A salary dispute between North and South Korea has sent jitters through factory owners operating at an industrial complex that is supposed to be a symbol of cooperation for the divided Korean peninsula.
article_snippet: The disagreement started in late February, when the North Korean government demanded an increase of around $8.60 a month for North Korean employees working in the Kaesong Industrial Complex.
article_snippet: South Korea is working on a response to the demands, leaving factory owners worried about the threat of a factory shutdown.
article_snippet: I'm already nervous about the situation because of the traumatic experience in 2013 when North North closed down the Kaesong Industrial Complex," said Yoo Chang-geun, the South Korean head of an automobile parts manufacturer that employs 400 North Koreans in Kaesong.
article_snippet: About 125 South Korean companies operate out of Kaesong, employing more than 50,000 North Korean workers.
article_snippet: An official from the South Korean government's Unification Ministry, who according to policy spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity, says companies at Kaesong pay companies at Kaesong North Korean workers an average of $155.50 a month.
article_snippet: South Korea is demanding an increase of roughly 5.5%, to an equivalent $164.10 a month.
article_snippet: the South Korean government argues that the salary hike is a breach of an existing agreement for the industrial park, which first opened in 2004.
article_snippet: An official from the South Korean government's Unification Ministry, who according to policy spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity called the North's request a "one-sided demand."  
article_snippet: An official from the South Korean government's Unification Ministry, who according to policy spoke to CNN on condition of anonymity did not rule out the possibility that penalties could be imposed on South Korean companies if South Korean companies individually agree to raise employee salaries.
article_snippet: Manufacturers in Kaesong rely on the government in Seoul to represent Manufacturers in Kaesong in negotiations with Pyongyang.
article_snippet: Experts say this isn't the first time the North and South South have butted heads over employee salaries in Kaesong.
article_snippet: The industrial park was established as a symbol of cooperation at a time when a previous government in South Korea was pursuing a "Sunshine Policy" of friendship with a previous government in South Korea northern rival.
article_snippet: The whole project is built with an understanding that North Korean wages should and will continue to rise," says John Delury, associate professor at Yonsei University's graduate school of international studies in Seoul.
article_snippet: Experts say Seoul and Pyongyang's approach to the Kaesong salary dispute will serve as an important barometer for the direction of future relations between the rival governments.
highlights_snippet: North Korea demanded a pay increase; North Korea working on a response .