Employees from Samsung who are striking for improved working conditions and higher wages staged a large rally in South Korea on Monday, marking the third week of their ongoing protest against the company.
Approximately 1,200 members of the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU) participated in the rally, marching through the Giheung campus in Yongin, as reported by the Associated Press.
This demonstration followed initial wage negotiation discussions that took place between the union and Samsung on Friday, according to Bloomberg.
The NSEU declared an indefinite strike on July 8 after a previous attempt to secure workplace improvements did not yield results. While the union represents over 30,000 employees, it remains unclear how many are currently participating in the indefinite strike. Nevertheless, this strike is noted as the largest in Samsung’s history.
Despite Samsung’s forecasted revenue increase of over 1,450% year-over-year attributed to an AI boom, and a reported tenfold rise in profits for the first quarter of 2024, the NSEU claims that workers have not seen corresponding pay increases.
A significant number of strikers work at Samsung’s foundry, which manufactures some of the world’s most advanced computer chips, as stated by AFP.
Experts highlight that Samsung has a reputation for being unsupportive of union activities and lacks experience in engaging 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 this strike could bolster the labor movement across South Korea.