Seoul, South Korea – Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and its largest workers’ union in South
Korea have agreed to resume negotiations on Friday, potentially ending a strike that began
last week over pay and benefits.
The National Samsung Electronics Union, which represents around 30,000 workers,
roughly a quarter of Samsung’s South Korean workforce, has been on an indefinite strike
since early last week. The union’s president, Son Woo-mok, announced the decision to
resume talks in a YouTube live broadcast.Samsung, the world’s largest memory chipmaker,
has been struggling to navigate competition in semiconductors used for artificial
intelligence. Analysts have warned that a prolonged strike by key personnel could add to
the company’s challenges.
Despite the strike, Samsung has maintained that chip production has not been disrupted.
The company has proposed an unconditional resumption of dialogue and hopes to resolve
the strike as soon as possible.
The outcome of Friday’s talks remains uncertain, but a resolution to the strike would be a
welcome relief for Samsung and its stakeholders. The strike has highlighted the challenges
faced by Samsung and other technology companies in balancing worker demands with the
need to remain competitive in a rapidly changing industry. The National Samsung
Electronics Union has 30,000 members, which is almost a quarter of Samsung’s workforce
in South Korea.The strike is over pay and benefits.
Despite the strike, Samsung says there has been no disruption to chip production.
Samsung wants the strike to end as soon as possible and has proposed an unconditional
resumption of dialogue.
