South Korean workers at Samsung Electronics walked off the job Monday as part of a three-day work stoppage to change the company’s bonus and annual leave policies.
Just over 6,500 National Samsung Electronics Union members will be on picket lines through Wednesday. The workers will mostly be on strike at Samsung’s major manufacturing centers in South Korea.
According to the union, some of the workers participating are responsible for monitoring the automated production lines, so the strike could affect manufacturing.
Then again, most of Samsung’s chip production is automated, meaning the strike is unlikely to have a serious impact on the company. Also, turnout was relatively low, with 20% of union members participating in the strike.
However, the union has promised to ramp up demonstrations and work stoppages if Samsung doesn’t meet its demands. The union wants the company to increase annual leave and provide performance-based bonuses to rank-and-file workers.
Samsung has reportedly proposed increased pay and time off but hasn’t met the union’s demands.
If the strike continues, it could threaten Samsung’s ability to compete in the growing artificial intelligence chip market. While the company’s share price has dropped in recent months, high demand for AI chips has increased profits.
• Vaughn Cockayne can be reached at vcockayne@washingtontimes.com.
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