Hyundai Wia Partners Announce Strike on 20th... Kia Gwangju Plant Faces Production Disruptions Emergency

[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] Hyundai Wia's in-house subcontractor has announced a solidarity strike with the Metal Workers' Union on the 20th, putting the production at Kia Motors' Gwangju plant, a finished car manufacturer, on alert.

According to the automotive industry on the 17th, Hyundai Wia's in-house subcontractor at the Gwangju plant plans to hold a send-off ceremony on the 20th and begin a partial strike. If the subcontractor's strike proceeds, it could disrupt Hyundai Wia's production and also affect Kia Motors, drawing attention to whether the strike will commence.

Previously, irregular workers at Hyundai Wia's Pyeongtaek plant have been protesting, demanding direct employment by Hyundai Wia. In addition, starting next week, in-house subcontractors at the Gwangju and Ansan plants are expected to launch large-scale struggles in solidarity with the Metal Workers' Union to highlight the issue of direct employment. The labor status confirmation lawsuit filed by union members of Pyeongtaek plant subcontractors is awaiting the Supreme Court's final ruling after the first and second trials.

Hyundai Wia management decided to relocate Pyeongtaek Plant 2 to Ulsan to improve company profitability, but union members of the subcontractors at the Pyeongtaek plant strongly oppose this, claiming it is pressure from the company to avoid direct employment. The management proposed creating a subsidiary in Pyeongtaek to allow work near Pyeongtaek if desired, but the labor side rejected this and continues to demand direct employment.

The issue is that if Hyundai Wia subcontractors' full-scale solidarity strike begins next week, it could affect not only Hyundai Wia's parts production lines but also the production of Kia Motors, a finished car manufacturer. The subcontractor unions under the Metal Workers' Union estimate that the 5-hour partial strike on the 20th will cause production disruptions of around 400 vehicles at Kia Motors' Gwangju plant. However, production disruptions at Kia's Sohari plant, which has a high proportion of stamping, are expected to be minimized. A Hyundai Wia official said, "If the strike proceeds, we will do our best to prevent production disruptions."

A Metal Workers' Union official said, "We plan to enter a solidarity strike to oppose the direct employment issue of irregular workers and the relocation of Hyundai Wia's Pyeongtaek plant to Ulsan," adding, "Whether additional strikes occur will be decided according to each branch's schedule."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.