[비즈한국] Samsung Electronics005930 labor and management failed to reach a final agreement at the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) post-adjustment meeting on the 20th, one day before the announced general strike. The labor union accepted the mediation proposal presented by the NLRC, but the management reserved its position, leading to the conclusion of the adjustment process. The Samsung Electronics labor union plans to go on strike as scheduled on the 21st. Management stated they could not accept the union's excessive demands, as they could shake the basic principles of management, but added that they would exert efforts to resolve the issues until the very last moment.
While there is talk of the government potentially invoking its "emergency adjustment power" to halt the union's industrial action, NLRC Chairman Park Soo-keun drew a line on discussing emergency adjustment immediately after the meeting, stating, "Since a resolution must be reached eventually, if labor and management agree and request mediation, I will respond at any time, whether it's night or a holiday."
"One Big Issue, One or Two Minor Issues" Failed to Narrow Differences
Samsung Electronics labor and management resumed the 3rd post-adjustment meeting at the NLRC in the Government Complex Sejong this morning but ended negotiations without finding a common ground. The NLRC presented a mediation proposal, but while the union accepted it, management reserved its decision and refused to sign, leading to the failure of the 2nd post-adjustment. Chairman Park, who presided over the meeting, stated immediately after the breakdown, "Although this adjustment did not lead to a final agreement, if labor and management agree to request further post-adjustment, we will resume mediation at any time to support labor-management negotiations."
The NLRC had been conducting post-adjustment to mediate wage negotiations between Samsung Electronics labor and management since the 18th. Chairman Park explained, "We came very close (to an agreement), but could not fundamentally bridge the gap on two or three items," adding, "There was one big issue and one or two minor issues." As the adjustment failed, the specific details were decided not to be disclosed under an agreement between both parties.
The main issue that could not be resolved even after a marathon session totaling 25 hours is estimated to be the profit-sharing ratio. Labor and management were negotiating over the source of the performance bonus, the abolition of the cap and institutionalization, and the payment ratio for the Memory Business Division.
Previously, the union demanded that 15% of operating profit be used as a source for performance bonuses, with 70% of that source allocated as a common payment to employees in the Semiconductor (DS) division, and the remaining 30% distributed differentially based on the performance of individual business units within the DS division. If the common funding ratio is this high, employees in non-memory business units such as System LSI and Foundry, which are currently recording losses, would also receive high performance bonuses.
On the other hand, it is known that the company proposed a plan to use 9-10% of operating profit as a source when the DS division's operating profit exceeds 200 trillion won, with a distribution ratio of "60% common to the division, 40% to individual business units." This plan aims to lower the common ratio and increase compensation for the memory business division.
Samsung Electronics released a statement that day, saying, "Although the company accepted most of the scale and content of the performance bonuses, the union did not back down from its demand for socially unacceptable levels of compensation for loss-making business units," and stated that the reason they could not reach a final agreement was that "accepting the labor union's excessive demands as they are could shake the basic principles of the company's management."
Choi Seung-ho, chairman of the Samsung Electronics branch of the Samsung Group's super-enterprise labor union, also released a statement, claiming, "The labor union agreed to the mediation proposal presented by the National Labor Relations Commission, but management could not make a decision in the end."
According to the union's statement, the union expressed its agreement to the NLRC's mediation proposal around 10 PM on the 19th, but management conveyed its refusal. The union explained that after that, with the NLRC about to declare the failure of the mediation, Yeo Myeong-gu, the head of the DS (Device Solutions) People Team and representative negotiator for management, withdrew the refusal and requested additional time, extending the post-adjustment process until today. The union stated that even until 11 AM on the 20th, management only repeated that "no decision has been made," and that "the post-adjustment eventually ended according to the NLRC's proceedings."
As labor and management opinions continued to clash, the NLRC presented a last-minute compromise proposal, but the company did not sign it. The company emphasized, "This directly violates the company's basic management principle that 'there is compensation where there is performance.' Abandoning this principle could have a negative impact not only on our company but also on other companies and industries."
Clash Between Management Principles and Union Demands
Previously, during the 1st post-adjustment on the 12th, the NLRC proposed a draft mediation plan that included using 12% of operating profit as a source and distributing it as 70% common to the DS division and 30% to business units, but it fell through when the union did not accept it. In the 2nd post-adjustment, the company accepted most of the union's demands, but it ended without results as they could not narrow the differences regarding the ratio of bonuses for loss-making business units.
The union reaffirmed its plan to enter a large-scale general strike starting on the 21st, based on its legal right to collective action. The industry expects Samsung Electronics to suffer massive losses due to production disruptions caused by the strike.
However, both Samsung Electronics labor and management have expressed their willingness to talk at any time. Chairman Choi said, "I would like to express my gratitude to the government and those involved who did their best to reach a negotiated settlement," and added, "If there are additional post-adjustment procedures, we will engage in them faithfully."
Management also stated, "There should be no strike under any circumstances," and added, "The company will not give up on dialogue until the last moment to prevent the worst-case scenario." They emphasized, "The company will continue efforts to resolve the problem through additional post-adjustment or direct dialogue with the union."
The NLRC plans to attempt additional post-adjustment until the end. It is maintaining a cautious attitude regarding whether to use the emergency adjustment power, which has been mentioned as the government's final card. Previously, on the 16th, Prime Minister Kim Min-seok suggested the possibility of invoking the emergency adjustment power, saying, "If the strike is feared to cause damage to the national economy, we will explore all response measures, including emergency adjustment." Chairman Park said, "Because the negotiations must be settled, if labor and management agree and request additional post-adjustment, I will respond at any time, whether it's night or a holiday."