[1mm Financial Talk] "Even an Invitation to a Bonus Party"… Grumbling Woori Bank Employees

“If it were a ‘bonus party,’ I might feel less unfair.”

Recently, among Woori Bank employees, there have been voices mixed with dissatisfaction surrounding performance bonuses. While the banking sector has been criticized by public opinion for a ‘bonus party,’ Woori Bank employees do not even know what percentage of the bonus they will receive. Most commercial banks such as KB Kookmin, Shinhan, Hana, and NH Nonghyup Bank have already paid performance bonuses, but Woori Bank employees have yet to receive theirs. One Woori Bank employee lamented, “I don’t even know how much or when I will receive it, but being lumped together with other banks that have already paid bonuses and getting criticized is frustrating.”

Meanwhile, as financial authorities have announced plans to improve banks’ performance bonus systems, there is even anxiety internally that bonuses might be reduced. On the anonymous workplace community ‘Blind,’ a post appeared saying, “The government is trying to interfere with the performance bonuses we earn for our work, so I don’t know if we will be able to receive them.”

The reason for the delay in Woori Bank’s bonus payment is due to delays in labor-management consultations caused by the Woori Bank union election. The union election is held every three years, and with Park Bong-su elected as union chairman last December, the new union was launched on January 6 this year. Although performance bonuses are not a matter of labor-management agreement, various welfare matters are decided through labor-management agreements, and since it is cumbersome to announce bonuses separately, it is customary to announce them together with new welfare programs.

Moreover, recently, the issue of provisions has also had an impact. Earlier this month, financial authorities recommended banks to additionally set aside provisions to prepare for credit risks, but Woori Bank has not yet decided how much more to accumulate. A Woori Bank official stated, “Once the financial statements are approved at the shareholders’ meeting on the 24th of next month and the settlement is completed, the performance bonuses will be paid.”

The performance bonuses to be paid by Woori Bank next month are expected to be lower than last year in terms of percentage. According to financial sector sources on the 24th, Woori Bank can pay up to 300% of the base salary as performance bonuses according to labor-management agreements, but this year it is expected to be around 280% of the base salary. Compared to last year when more than 300% of the base salary (200% of base salary + 100% of base salary for employee morale boosting + 1 million KRW) was paid, it has actually decreased.

Meanwhile, KB Kookmin Bank paid 280% of the base salary as performance bonuses and separately gave a special encouragement bonus of 3.4 million KRW. Shinhan Bank decided on a performance bonus of 361% of the base salary; 300% has already been paid, and the remaining 61% will be distributed as stocks after the March shareholders’ meeting. NH Nonghyup Bank also set the performance bonus at 400% of the base salary. Hana Bank set a profit-linked special performance bonus at 350% of the base salary, which is expected to be paid around April.

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