After negotiations with management fell, workers at South Korean electronics giant, Samsung, began a three-day national strike on Monday, the head of a union representing tens of thousands of workers told AFP.
The National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU) is requesting that the corporation enhance its performance-based bonus structure and grant employees an additional day of yearly leave.
The NSEU represents approximately 28,000 workers or more than 5% of the company’s workforce in South Korea.
Analysts said that the strike is unlikely to have a significant effect on output at the largest memory chip manufacturer in the world due to limited participation and automated production.
“The strike has started from today,” Son Woo-mok, head of the National Samsung Electronics Union, stated.
The union and management of the company, which makes the most memory chips in the world, have been unable to resolve their disputes regarding pay and benefits since January.
Employees have turned down a wage increase of 5.1%; the union had previously listed demands for increased yearly leave and clear performance-based bonuses.
Last month, the union staged a mass walkout by organising annual leave to carry out its first industrial action. According to Samsung, there was no effect of the move on company operations.
On Monday morning, the union intends to stage a demonstration close to Samsung’s headquarters in Hwaseong, a city south of Seoul.
The strike is scheduled to last for three days, from July 8 to July 10, and is regarded as the largest organised labour protest in the history of the nation.
The union has stated that more strikes may occur despite this deadline if their demands are not met.
We earlier reported that during a recent visit to the US, Samsung Electronics Chairman, Lee Jae-yong, met with the CEOs of Meta, Amazon, and Qualcomm to discuss potential commercial ventures in AI and cloud computing.