Backlash Over Samsung Electronics' Bonus Plan Spreads Across Samsung Affiliates

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[Financial News] Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (SEC) management and labor reached a tentative agreement just before a general strike, but the fallout is now spreading across Samsung affiliates. In particular, after the newly introduced 'special management performance bonus' for the semiconductor Device Solutions Division was made public, voices inside major affiliates such as Samsung Display Co., Ltd., Samsung SDI and Samsung Electro-Mechanics Co., Ltd. have quickly grown louder, asking whether their own bonus systems should also be revised.
According to industry sources on the 25th, Samsung Display, Samsung SDI and Samsung Electro-Mechanics had already wrapped up wage negotiations for 2026 earlier this year. However, internal unrest is growing after SEC labor and management reached a tentative agreement on the 20th that centers on the introduction of a special management performance bonus.
The key point of the tentative agreement between SEC labor and management is the special management performance bonus for the Samsung Electronics Device Solutions Division. If SEC's operating profit this year reaches 30 trillion won, employees in the Memory Business, based on an annual salary of 100 million won, are expected to receive about 55 million won in special management performance bonuses. Combined with the existing Over-Performance Incentive (OPI), their total bonus package could reach around 600 million won. The System LSI Business and the Samsung Electronics Foundry Business are also expected to receive at least 160 million won each in special management performance bonuses alone, based on the 40% allocation structure of the DS division's common fund. With the common OPI added, the total bonus amount could exceed 200 million won.
The news has quickly spread a sense of frustration and deprivation inside the affiliates. Their wage increases and OPI payout rates have rarely surpassed those of the flagship SEC. This year, wage increases at Samsung Display, Samsung SDI and Samsung Electro-Mechanics were 6.2%, 4.0% and 5.9%, respectively, which are generally lower than SEC's 6.2%. The bonus calculation method has also come under scrutiny. The Samsung Electronics Device Solutions Division agreed to change the OPI formula, which can reach up to 50% of annual salary, from the existing Economic Value Added (EVA) standard to 10% of operating profit. The affiliates, however, are still sticking with the EVA-based system.
As a result, affiliates that posted profits in the past but still received low OPI payouts are showing stronger resistance. In the case of Samsung Electro-Mechanics, internal backlash erupted in 2023 after the company posted more than 600 billion won in operating profit but set the OPI payout rate at just 1% of annual salary. For new hires, that amounts to roughly 500,000 won. Even in 2024 and 2025, Samsung Electro-Mechanics' OPI payout rate remained in the single digits at 5% to 6%. This year, with operating profit expected to hit a record 1.5 trillion won on the back of the semiconductor supercycle, demands for larger bonuses are expected to intensify. Samsung SDI, which recorded an OPI of zero last year after being hit hard by the electric vehicle demand slowdown, is also said to be seeing internal unrest as employees compare their situation with SEC, which even rewards loss-making divisions.
Looking ahead, discussions on revising bonus systems between labor and management at each affiliate are expected to become more active. The Samsung Display labor union plans to discuss the introduction of an alternative compensation system for bonuses in the second half of this year with management. Samsung Electro-Mechanics also plans to gather employee opinions on changing the OPI calculation method to either 20% of EVA or 10% of operating profit.
Meanwhile, some observers are warning that the strategy of "winning demands through strikes" could spread across Samsung affiliates. With the SEC labor-management agreement as a catalyst, affiliate unions may grow rapidly, or unions that have been divided by region or workplace could join forces and build greater momentum.
soup@fnnews.com Lim Su-bin Reporter