Samsung Electronics Labor and Management Enter First Wage Negotiation... Introductory Meeting This Afternoon

Negotiations Scheduled Weekly
Union Proposes 10 Million KRW Salary Increase and Company Stock Grants

Samsung Electronics Seocho Building, Seocho-gu, Seoul [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] Samsung Electronics labor and management are entering their first-ever wage negotiations since the company's founding.

According to industry sources and Samsung on the 5th, Samsung Electronics labor and management officials will hold a meet-and-greet this afternoon at the negotiation hall on the 2nd floor of the Nano Park at the Giheung Campus in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, to discuss the 2021 wage negotiation procedures and schedule. Labor and management plan to conduct negotiations about once a week starting with this meeting.

Previously, four labor unions within Samsung Electronics?the National Samsung Electronics Union under the Korean Metal Workers' Union, the Samsung Electronics Office Workers' Union, the Samsung Electronics Gumi Branch Union, and the Samsung Electronics Union?agreed to form a joint negotiation team to engage in the talks. Among these unions, the National Samsung Electronics Union is the largest, with approximately 4,500 members.

This wage negotiation is the first since Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong declared in May last year the end of no-union management, drawing significant attention from the business community regarding the process and outcome. Since the establishment of the Samsung Electronics union in 2018, labor and management have held wage negotiations before, but no actual wage agreement has ever been reached.

The Samsung Electronics unions' draft proposal for wage negotiations includes a uniform annual salary increase of 10 million KRW for all employees, issuance of company shares (approximately 1.07 million KRW per person) and COVID-19 bonuses (approximately 3.5 million KRW per person), and a performance bonus of 25% of annual operating profit.

In this regard, the corporate analysis institute 'Leaders Index' analyzed Samsung Electronics' business report from last year based on wages and management performance and stated that if the wage negotiations are settled according to the unions' draft proposal, the average salary per Samsung Electronics employee is estimated to be about 182.6 million KRW. This represents an increase of approximately 51% compared to last year (about 121 million KRW).

Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics had previously announced a total wage increase of 7.5% for this year through its in-house autonomous body, the Labor-Management Council, in March. Until then, Samsung Electronics set annual wage increase rates through the Labor-Management Council without wage negotiations with unions, following its no-union management policy.

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