Samsung employees advocating for improved working conditions and higher wages organized a significant rally in South Korea on Monday, marking the third week of their ongoing strike.
Around 1,200 members of the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU) gathered to march at the Giheung campus in Yongin, according to reports. This demonstration followed initial wage negotiation discussions between the union and Samsung, which took place last Friday.
The NSEU initiated an indefinite strike on July 8 after previous efforts to secure workplace improvements did not yield results. While the union represents over 30,000 workers, the exact number participating in the indefinite strike remains unclear. Nevertheless, this strike has been noted as the largest in Samsung’s history.
Despite Samsung projecting a staggering 1,450% increase in second-quarter revenue year-over-year, driven by a surge in artificial intelligence, and reporting a tenfold profit increase for the first quarter of 2024, the NSEU argues that employees have not benefited from these record earnings.
Many striking workers are employed at Samsung’s foundry, which manufactures some of the most advanced computer chips globally. Experts highlight that Samsung has a reputation for being unsupportive of union activities and has limited experience in engaging with its workforce.
If workers at Samsung succeed in their strike, it could potentially empower labor movements across South Korea, according to Vladimir Tikhonov, a professor of Korean studies at the University of Oslo.