"It's Draining" — SK hynix Inc. Employees Feel Fatigued by Rumors of 1.3 Billion Won Per-Person Bonuses

[Financial News] SK hynix Inc. employees are reportedly under stress over performance bonuses.
On the 14th, Macquarie Securities projected in a recent report that SK hynix Inc.'s operating profit for next year will reach 447 trillion won. Based on Macquarie's forecast, the funds set aside for performance bonuses alone would amount to about 44 trillion won. A simple calculation dividing this by the roughly 34,500 employees suggests an average payout of 1.29 billion won per person.
This figure is roughly double earlier estimates from domestic securities firms. They had predicted that, thanks to this year's semiconductor supercycle, an exceptional boom period, SK hynix Inc. would post a record operating profit of 250 trillion won, and that if this materialized, employees would receive an average performance bonus of about 700 million won each.
As these numbers circulate, employees who are fully focused on semiconductor production say they are feeling significant fatigue from constant questions about bonuses and related issues.
Posting on Blind, an anonymous online community for office workers, some wrote, "Whether it's 700 million or 1.3 billion won, it's obviously an enormous amount of money." They continued, "But when family, friends, and acquaintances keep calling to ask 'how much are you getting this time,' and every gathering ends with people saying 'you should pick up the tab,' it really brings you down," expressing their frustration.
Meanwhile, SK hynix Inc. is scheduled to announce its first-quarter 2026 earnings on the 23rd. Some analysts expect quarterly operating profit to approach 40 trillion won, nearly double the previous quarter.
Amid expectations that the semiconductor boom will continue, SK hynix Inc.'s "April Talent hy-way Maintenance/Operator" recruitment notice, posted on its careers website on the 13th, is also expected to attract a large number of applicants.
The positions are open to high school graduates or junior college graduates who can start work in July or August. Work locations include the Icheon Campus in Gyeonggi Province, Yongin, and the Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province campus. After passing the document screening, applicants will take the SK Comprehensive Competency Test (SKCT) in May, and those who pass interviews in June will be selected as final hires.


hsg@fnnews.com Han Seung-gon Reporter