[비즈한국] Dissatisfaction among Homeplus employees regarding their increasingly poor working conditions is growing. Staff members claim that MBK Partners, the major shareholder of Homeplus, is focused solely on recovering its capital, and as a result, is not investing in hiring new personnel or improving working environments.
“Even when we hire, they leave quickly”
Mr. A, who joined Homeplus in his mid-30s and has worked there for over 20 years, complained that the work has become significantly harder recently. He lamented, "Since the average age of our store employees is high, around their 50s, many people leave the company every year due to mandatory retirement. We need new hires to fill those empty spots, but the company doesn't seem to have any intention of doing so. Because we are trying to run the stores with fewer people, the issue of excessive workloads for employees has become severe. Work that used to be done by 10 people now has to be done by two. That is why the number of people quitting has been noticeably increasing over the past five years."
As the retail industry continues to suffer from poor performance, a wave of restructuring is blowing through. The entire retail sector, including large supermarkets, duty-free shops, and e-commerce, is moving toward reducing manpower to survive in a competitive environment. Amidst this, Homeplus has consistently emphasized that it "will not carry out artificial restructuring." In particular, as the recent acceleration of store closures raised concerns about employee layoffs, Homeplus stated that employment stability is its top priority and it would not force any staff cuts.
However, the employees' reaction is cold. Critics point out that the company appears to be waiting for employees to leave on their own, hiding behind the claim that there is no "artificial restructuring." Some employees argue that by failing to hire new staff, the company creates poor working conditions and effectively leaves the employees with no choice but to quit. One employee remarked, "Compared to our competitors, we have about 15 to 20 fewer employees per store on average. The workload one person has to handle is enormous. Due to the high-intensity labor, people are quitting one after another."
In fact, the number of Homeplus employees has dropped significantly over the last decade. The number of Homeplus employees (based on National Pension Service subscribers) fell by about 26.5%, from 26,477 in 2015 to 19,465 in 2024 (as of September). During the same period, the number of employees at E-mart139480 (based on public disclosure data) dropped by 19.3%, from 27,424 to 22,121 (as of June).
A Homeplus labor union representative said, "To operate stores with fewer people, the company introduced and has been operating an 'integrated department' system since 2020. Previously, employees had fixed tasks such as cashiering, food display, or logistics, but they have integrated these roles. Now, an employee who used to only work at the register has to go fill shelves while also handling transactions, which has increased the work burden. We have demanded the dissolution of the integrated departments during this year's wage negotiations, but it has not been accepted."
While Homeplus claims it is filling positions through annual recruitment, employees point out that it is merely for show. The union representative argued, "Because it’s an environment of low wages and high-intensity labor, out of 1,000 people hired, 700 leave quickly. Only about 300 remain. You can't say hiring is being done properly when 300 people are filling the gaps left by 2,000 people quitting."
In response, a Homeplus official countered, "Homeplus hires over 1,000 new employees every year. The number of people leaving due to retirement or other natural causes is greater than the number of new hires. Homeplus has the lowest resignation rate (8% as of 2020) among the three major supermarket chains."
Stalled Sale of Express Stores: Will Reinvestment Happen?
Complaints also arise that because MBK Partners, the major shareholder of Homeplus, is focused only on recouping investments, there is no investment being made in improving employees' working conditions. Mr. B, who works at a Homeplus store, pointed out, "They emphasize expanding e-commerce, but the working environment for relevant employees is extremely poor. Since delivery trucks come and go, the online product sorting area of the store is no different from being outdoors. It's hot in the summer and cold in the winter, but there is no air conditioning or heating. Employees have to sort products in such places. They said they would provide heating for the winter cold, but all they did was install a piece of vinyl."
Homeplus explained, "We are striving to provide heating and cooling equipment for our staff. We also recently provided cold-related illness prevention kits to online delivery drivers. For some stores, due to the nature of the space, providing cooling and heating equipment can be difficult. In those cases, we try to support them by providing mobile or personal equipment."
Homeplus previously announced that it would fully reinvest the proceeds from the sale of its Express (corporate supermarket) division back into Homeplus. However, skeptical reactions prevail among the staff. The union representative pointed out, "When MBK Partners acquired Homeplus in 2015, they said they would invest 1 trillion won, but how much has actually improved? Local stores are so aged that the building exteriors are discolored, and there are many places where the ceiling leaks. They say they renovated some stores, but that cost came from reinvesting profits earned by Homeplus, not from new investment money. The company says it will invest the proceeds from the Express sale into large supermarkets, but we cannot believe that."
Homeplus has been pursuing the sale of its SSM division, Homeplus Express, since June. Homeplus Express has about 300 stores, and the expected sale price is estimated to be around 800 billion won. However, the process has been sluggish for five months without finding a buyer. GS Retail007070, which was considered a leading candidate for acquisition, is also reported to have recently ceased its acquisition review.
Homeplus explained, "Because the sale announcement was made early, the progress seems slow. The situation is currently proceeding without any problems."