Employees at Samsung held a significant rally in South Korea on Monday, marking the third week of their strike for improved working conditions and higher wages. Approximately 1,200 members of the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU) participated in the demonstration, marching through the company’s Giheung campus in Yongin, as reported by the Associated Press.
The strike follows initial wage negotiation discussions between the union and Samsung that took place on Friday, according to Bloomberg. The NSEU declared an indefinite strike on July 8 after previous efforts to secure workplace improvements fell short.
While the union represents over 30,000 employees, it remains unclear how many are actively participating in the indefinite strike. Nonetheless, this strike is noted as the largest in the history of the technology giant.
Despite Samsung’s expectation of a more than 1,450% year-over-year revenue increase for the second quarter attributed to advancements in artificial intelligence, and a tenfold surge in profits for the first quarter of 2024, the NSEU highlights that workers have not experienced corresponding pay raises.
A significant number of strikers are employed at Samsung’s foundry, which manufactures some of the world’s most sophisticated computer chips.
Experts point out that Samsung has a reputation for being resistant to union activities and lacks experience in negotiations with its workforce. According to Vladimir Tikhonov, a professor of Korean studies at the University of Oslo, the success of Samsung workers in their current endeavors could inspire and empower labor movements across South Korea.