Unionized workers of Samsung Electronics warn of up to 30 tln-won loss from planned general strike

SEOUL, April 17 (Yonhap) — Unionized workers of Samsung Electronics Co. on Friday argued the tech giant may lose up to 30 trillion won (US$20.3 billion) in profit this year alone should it go ahead with its walkout as planned.

Such a warning came amid stalled wage talks, in which the unionized workers earlier demanded a sharp increase in performance-based bonuses that many say may force Samsung Electronics to pay as much as 45 trillion won this year in bonuses if realized.

“If we continue a strike for 18 days, the company is expected to suffer at least 20 trillion won to 30 trillion won in losses,” Choi Seung-ho, head of the Samsung Electronics unit at the Samsung Group United Union (SGUU), said at a press conference.

The union earlier announced plans to stage a general walkout for 18 days from May 21 to June 7.

Given that Samsung Electronics is projected by some analysts to post as much as 300 trillion won in operating profit this year, the company could incur losses of about 1 trillion won per day if production disruptions arise from the strike, Choi explained.

He said the union has demanded the removal of a cap on bonuses and greater transparency in calculating performance-based pay, but that management has responded insincerely.

Labor-management negotiations have been at a stalemate since the union suspended talks last month.

Earlier this week, Samsung Electronics filed for a court injunction to prevent the union from occupying key facilities, such as semiconductor production lines, in order to avoid significant operational losses.

Meanwhile, the Samsung Electronics unit of the SGUU said its membership has surpassed 74,000, out of the company’s total workforce of about 129,000.

The union has become the first to secure a majority of employees, gaining legal status as the representative labor union.