A worker should receive fair compensation for the labor provided, but the rights to manage the enterprise should be respected equally with labor, stated South Korean President Lee Jae Myung ahead of a large-scale strike planned for May 21 by the Samsung workers' union.
Where the Mountain is High, the Valley is Deep
"The law states: where there is a bright side, there is also a dark side; where the mountain is high, the valley is deep. Excess is harmful, and extremes always turn back. Strength and happiness do not lie in having more at the expense of power, but in solidarity and responsibility, in a world where everyone lives well together — this is the future of the new Republic of Korea," he wrote on social media platform X.
The country's Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, Kim Jong Gwan, stated that the planned workers' strike could cost the South Korean economy up to 100 trillion won ($66 billion), according to Chosun. Its consequences, the minister estimates, could affect 1,700 companies.
If the strike occurs, nearly 45,000 union members will stop working for 18 days. This is expected to cause disruptions in the production of the world's largest memory chip manufacturer, reports The Korea Times.
Give a Billion!
On Monday, May 18, Samsung Electronics and its union resumed negotiations mediated by the government. The Korean newspaper called this the last attempt to prevent the 18-day strike scheduled for May 21.
The union demands that 15% of operating profit be allocated to employees as performance bonuses and the removal of payment restrictions, but management refuses, the newspaper reports.
According to Samsung's financial report, its operating profit for the year was 43.6 trillion won (approximately $29 billion). Fifteen percent of the profit amounts to $4.35 billion.
Samsung is the largest South Korean conglomerate and one of the world's technology leaders. In the global market, the brand is primarily associated with its subsidiary Samsung Electronics. The market capitalization of the latter has exceeded $1 trillion. The company accounts for about 12.5% of South Korea's GDP, and its number of employees exceeds 129,000.
