Samsung Electronics union says it will not consider further talks with management

[Financial News] Choi Seung-ho, chairman of Samsung Electronics' largest union, the enterprise union, said on the 13th that he is "not considering any further talks with the company" and announced plans to stage a general strike for 18 days starting on the 21st. Earlier that day, the Samsung Electronics union declared that the post-mediation process at the National Labor Relations Commission had collapsed.
After the second hearing in the injunction case at the Suwon District Court on the morning of the 13th, Choi met with reporters and said, "During five months of negotiations, including the post-mediation process at the National Labor Relations Commission, the company's proposals made no progress at all." He added, "From the union's perspective, there is no longer any room for mediation." Choi also claimed, "Of the 17 hours of post-mediation, 16 hours were spent simply sitting and waiting," and said that extending the mediation despite no change in the proposals was, in his view, "an attempt to undermine the momentum for a general strike."
Asked about the possibility that wafers could deteriorate if the strike goes ahead, he said, "There are many ways to prevent wafer deterioration, and I think it is the wrong approach to say production must be pushed ahead to prevent that." The enterprise union said that as of the morning of the 13th, about 42,000 people had joined the strike, and it expects at least 50,000 participants. Responding to claims that performance bonuses cannot be the purpose of a labor dispute, Choi said, "Because the bonus amount is almost at the level of wages, we asked the National Labor Relations Commission and management, and we were told there was no problem." He added, "If there had been an issue, we would have already been told it was impossible."
Regarding the government's possible use of an "Emergency arbitration order," he said, "I am not thinking about the possibility of it being issued." An emergency arbitration order is a measure that the Minister of Employment and Labor can invoke exceptionally when labor disputes are likely to endanger daily life or significantly harm the national economy.
Choi added, "Compensation linked to SK hynix is, as we have consistently said, something that could lead Samsung to be called a 'SK hynix training school.'" He continued, "These issues can clearly be changed and institutionalized, and I find it hard to accept the proposal that only the semiconductor division should receive a one-time special management performance bonus."

ehcho@fnnews.com Jo Eun-hyo Reporter