Signs of Strikes at Renault Korea and Korea GM as Labor-Management Conflicts Intensify in the Complete Vehicle Industry

Renault Korea to Obtain Right to Strike if Central Labor Relations Commission Mediation Fails
Hankook GM Fails to Reach Agreement Over Closure of Bupyeong Plant and Other Issues

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] Although Hyundai Motor Company's labor and management have concluded this year's wage negotiations, conflicts are intensifying in other completed car industries. In particular, the labor unions of Renault Korea and Korea GM are taking steps to proceed with strikes, raising significant concerns in the industry. It is also observed that the two companies face difficulties reaching conclusions easily as labor and management are at odds over issues beyond wages.

According to the industry on the 25th, the Busan Regional Labor Relations Commission held the first mediation meeting regarding the mediation request filed by the Renault Korea labor union. Due to the large gap between labor and management positions, a decision to suspend mediation is expected as early as tomorrow.

The Renault Korea labor union held a strike vote on the 13th and 14th, with 1,653 out of 1,852 total union members (80.6%) approving the strike. If the Central Labor Relations Commission decides to suspend negotiations, the union will obtain a legal right to strike.

The union demands a basic wage increase of 97,472 KRW, a one-time payment of 5 million KRW, and regular employment. However, the biggest issue is the non-wage matter of a "multi-year agreement." The company proposes changing the wage negotiation cycle from annual to multi-year negotiations. To this end, it has presented a plan to increase the basic wage by 60,000 KRW annually and pay performance bonuses for three years starting this year. On the other hand, the union insists on conducting wage negotiations every year.

Park Jong-gyu, chairman of the Renault Korea labor union, stated in an appeal, "The company is trying to eliminate the three labor rights that the labor union can exercise," adding, "If the labor union is neutralized and our employment issues lead to acquisition or sale to another company that is highly suspicious, can we protect our jobs with the labor union when we have no right to collective action?"

The Korea GM labor union demands a monthly basic wage increase of 142,300 KRW and a performance bonus of 400% of the ordinary wage (approximately 16.94 million KRW). Like Renault Korea, Korea GM is facing greater conflicts between labor and management over issues other than the content of the wage agreement. Korea GM plans to close its Bupyeong Plant 2 by the end of this year. The union argues that investment and plans related to electric vehicles are necessary to reopen the plant and stabilize workers. The management shows a tough stance, stating there will be no additional investment for business normalization, making it difficult to find a compromise.

Recently, the refusal of delivery by Irae AMS, which halted operations at the Bupyeong and Changwon plants, has also intensified conflicts. During the 8th wage negotiation meeting held on the 19th, the union demanded measures regarding the delivery refusal incident, and the negotiation ended in just 10 minutes.

The Korea GM labor union plans to decide on the strike vote at the 4th Strike Committee meeting scheduled for the 12th of next month.

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