Employees of Samsung are currently striking for improved working conditions and enhanced pay, with a significant rally taking place in South Korea on Monday, marking the third week of their action.
According to reports, around 1,200 members of the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU) participated in the rally, marching through the Giheung campus in Yongin, South Korea. This rally followed initial wage negotiations between the union and Samsung that occurred on Friday.
The NSEU announced an indefinite strike on July 8 after a previous walkout did not achieve the workplace improvements its members seek. While the union represents over 30,000 workers, the exact number participating in the indefinite strike remains unclear. Nevertheless, this strike is now considered the largest in Samsung’s history.
Despite Samsung projecting an impressive second-quarter revenue increase of over 1,450% year-over-year, largely driven by a surge in AI technology, the NSEU has pointed out that employees are not seeing proportional pay increases despite the company’s record profits. Samsung has reported a tenfold rise in profits for the first quarter of 2024.
Many striking workers are employed at Samsung’s foundry, where they manufacture some of the world’s most sophisticated computer chips. Experts note that Samsung is often resistant to unionization and lacks experience in negotiating with its workforce.
A professor of Korean studies at the University of Oslo, Vladimir Tikhonov, commented that if the Samsung workers succeed in their efforts, it could empower labor movements across South Korea.