Employees at Samsung have organized a large rally in South Korea to demand improved working conditions and higher wages, as their strike enters its third week. Approximately 1,200 members of the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU) marched on the Giheung campus in Yongin, as reported by the Associated Press.
This rally followed initial wage negotiations between the union and Samsung that took place on Friday, according to Bloomberg.
The NSEU declared an indefinite strike on July 8 after a previous walkout did not achieve the desired workplace improvements. While the union represents over 30,000 workers, the exact number participating in the indefinite strike is unclear. Nevertheless, this strike marks the largest in Samsung’s history.
Despite Samsung’s projections of a significant increase in second-quarter revenue—anticipated to surge more than 1,450% year-over-year due to an artificial intelligence boom—and a tenfold rise in profits for the first quarter of 2024, the NSEU claims that employees are not benefiting from these financial successes through pay raises.
Many of the striking workers are employed at Samsung’s foundry, which manufactures some of the most advanced computer chips globally. Analysts suggest that Samsung has a reputation for being unfriendly towards unions and lacks experience in labor negotiations.
Experts, including Vladimir Tikhonov, a professor of Korean studies at the University of Oslo, believe that success for Samsung workers in their current efforts could empower labor movements across South Korea.