If It Stops, 1 Trillion Won Lost Per Day... "We Want More Bonuses" — 30,000 Gather for Samsung Pyeongtaek's Day of Destiny

April 23: Joint Struggle Headquarters of Samsung Union Holds Protest Rally
Union Demands Transparency in Bonus Calculation and Abolition of Bonus Cap
"Production Disruptions Could Lead to Loss of Trust and Customer Defections"

Tensions between labor and management at Samsung Electronics reached a peak on April 23, 2026, as the company’s labor union launched a massive protest rally at the Samsung Electronics Pyeongtaek Campus. With over 30,000 union members expected to gather at this event, it is projected to become the largest collective action since the company’s founding. The industry is concerned that if the union's collective action escalates into a general strike in May, it could result in both significant economic losses and a decline in the company’s market credibility.

The Samsung Electronics Union Joint Action Headquarters is holding a large-scale protest rally at the Pyeongtaek plant at 1 p.m. under the slogan “Let’s make things transparent and abolish the cap.” The schedule includes a preliminary rally from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., followed by the main rally from 2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. On site, the program will feature solidarity speeches, viewing of activity videos, and a large-scale card section performance.

The National Samsung Electronics Labor Union, the largest union of Samsung Electronics, declared a three-day general strike. On July 8, 2024, at the main gate of Samsung Electronics Hwaseong Plant in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, the protest flag was brought in at the general strike rally. Photo by Yongjun Cho jun21@

The union’s key demands are the transparency of the bonus calculation system and the removal of the upper limit for bonuses. The main point is to stipulate the payment of performance bonuses, sourced from 15% of operating profit, without any cap. Previously, management proposed that if the Device Solutions (DS) division achieved the top position in domestic industry sales and operating profit, special rewards would be offered, including compensation exceeding the upper limit for Outperformance Incentives (OPI). However, the union insisted on a permanent removal of the cap through institutional change, and the two sides failed to reach an agreement.

The union estimated that about 37,000 members would gather at the rally site. Accordingly, the police plan to completely block vehicle traffic on the eight-lane road near the Pyeongtaek Campus to prevent accidents and ensure smooth proceedings. On the same day, the Korea Shareholders’ Action Headquarters also announced a counter-rally opposing the union’s strike movement. However, as the expected number of participants is small and the counter-rally will disperse before the main union rally begins, the possibility of direct physical clashes is considered low.

At the rally held in front of the main gate of Samsung Electronics Hwaseong Plant in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province on July 8, 2024, where the National Samsung Electronics Labor Union, the largest union of Samsung Electronics, declared a three-day general strike, union members are shouting slogans. Photo by Yongjun Cho, jun21@

If the labor and management fail to reach an agreement even after this rally, the union plans to launch an 18-day general strike from May 21 to June 7. The union estimates that if the Samsung Electronics semiconductor lines come to a halt, losses could reach about 1 trillion won per day. This figure is based on the calculation that Samsung Electronics’ annual operating profit this year will be about 300 trillion won. In fact, when the Pyeongtaek plant experienced a power outage in 2018 and production was halted for about 28 minutes, losses amounted to approximately 50 billion won. When calculated on a daily basis, this would amount to about 2.6 trillion won.

The industry is also concerned that, amid fierce competition for leadership in next-generation markets such as HBM (High Bandwidth Memory), a strike causing production disruptions at Samsung Electronics could severely impact the entire semiconductor supply chain.

A Samsung representative stated, “If the production line stops, the first to be affected are partner companies that lose their supply orders, as well as non-regular, dispatched, and contract workers employed there,” adding, “It is estimated that each production line at the Samsung Electronics Pyeongtaek Campus creates about 30,000 jobs, including those at partner companies.”

At the rally held in front of the main gate of Samsung Electronics Hwaseong Plant in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, on July 8, 2024, where the National Samsung Electronics Labor Union, the largest union of Samsung Electronics, declared a three-day general strike, union members are shouting slogans. Photo by Yongjun Cho jun21@

If Samsung Electronics fails to meet the supply contract conditions with its clients due to the strike, there is a risk that the issue could escalate into discussions of breach of contract and compensation liability. If major clients such as Nvidia perceive Samsung’s strike as a long-term risk, the possibility of a decline in brand reputation and client departures cannot be ruled out.

An official in the semiconductor industry pointed out, “A situation in which promised quantities cannot be supplied on time signals nothing less than a ‘termination of partnership’ in the global market, where supply chain resilience is the top priority,” adding, “If illegal industrial action leads to a sharp drop in production, it is only a matter of time before Samsung loses its global leadership.”

In this regard, Lee Chanhee, Chairman of the Samsung Compliance Committee, stated, “Samsung is regarded not merely as a private company but as ‘the people’s company,’” and emphasized, “The union needs to be more cautious, taking into consideration shareholders, investors, and the public who are directly or indirectly linked to the company.”

At the three-day general strike rally held on July 8, 2024, in front of the main gate of Samsung Electronics Hwaseong Campus in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, union members of the Samsung Electronics National Union, the largest union at Samsung Electronics, are shouting slogans. Photo by Jo Yongjun jun21@

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