'Samsung Electronics Labor and Management Reach Tentative Agreement on Collective Bargaining After 9 Months of Negotiations'

by Woo Sooyoun

Published 30 Jul.2021 15:38(KST)

[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] After nine months of negotiations that began last year, Samsung Electronics labor and management tentatively agreed on a collective bargaining agreement on the 30th.

According to industry sources, on the afternoon of the same day, Samsung Electronics labor and management tentatively agreed on the '2021 Collective Agreement' at the Samsung Electronics Giheung Campus Nanopark in Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do. The union will soon hold a vote among its members to finalize the approval, and a signing ceremony for the collective agreement with the company is scheduled for next month.

Samsung Electronics labor and management have held over 30 negotiation sessions over nine months since their initial meeting in November last year. The collective agreement consists of 95 articles agreed upon by both parties, including provisions guaranteeing union office space, a time-off system for union officials, procedures for handling industrial accidents, and improvements to personnel systems.

A collective agreement is a pact reached through collective bargaining between labor and management regarding working conditions and other related matters. According to the Labor Union Act, it takes precedence over employment rules or individual labor contracts. Although Samsung Electronics labor and management have conducted collective bargaining before, they had difficulty establishing a collective agreement, making this the first time they have created one through mutual consent.

The Samsung Electronics union plans to begin wage negotiations for this year starting in September. Samsung Display, a Samsung Electronics affiliate, also signed a collective agreement in January this year and concluded a wage agreement earlier this month.