Samsung Display Union "Will Not Accept Management's Final Proposal"... Steps Toward Dispute

Union flag fluttering next to the Sung Display signboard

[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Dae-yeol] The Samsung Display labor union has decided not to accept the final proposal presented by the company. They have decided to proceed with dispute procedures. If an actual strike occurs, it will be the first strike case among Samsung Group affiliates since Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong of Samsung Electronics declared the end of ‘no-union management’ last May.

According to the union executive committee, union officials and delegates gathered in the afternoon and held a discussion for over three hours, resolving that "the company’s final proposal will not be accepted." The union stated that they will take time to prepare and carry out dispute activities. They plan to form a dispute countermeasure committee to devise detailed plans.

The union has already secured the right to strike legally following a 91% approval in the union members’ vote on strike action and the Ministry of Employment and Labor’s ‘mediation suspension’ ruling last month. However, even after deciding not to accept the company’s proposal on this day, they stated that "there is room for renegotiation if the proposal is revised," leaving the possibility of a last-minute agreement open.

Earlier, Samsung Display labor and management had been conducting wage negotiations for three months since February, but at the end of April, the union declared a breakdown in talks in protest against the company’s negotiation attitude. Afterwards, both sides resumed negotiations after about a month when Samsung Display President Choi Ju-seon and the union co-chairman met on the 25th of last month, and held two meetings until the day before yesterday but failed to reach a result.

On the previous day, the second representative negotiation for wage talks was held at the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions Chungnam Sejong Regional Headquarters. In the negotiation, the company conveyed to the union through the final proposal that it "cannot accept the demands." It was reported that the company expressed difficulty in accepting demands that would incur additional costs due to business difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and other reasons. The union is demanding a 6.8% increase in base pay and improvements to the performance bonus system based on last year’s results. On the other hand, the company’s position is that it cannot accept anything beyond the 4.5% base pay increase decided through the labor-management council.

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