‘KRW 600 million per employee’ and office chairs in the KRW 2 million range... Samsung Electronics to disclose detailed performance bonus plan at month-end

[Financial News] Specific details on the calculation method and payment criteria for the special management performance bonus for employees of Samsung Electronics’ semiconductor (DS) division are expected to be disclosed after the Chuseok holiday. Changes are also expected in employee treatment and welfare programs, including plans to use part of the bonus for social contributions and the introduction of high-end office chairs at the DS Division’s workplaces.
Industry sources said on the 24th that the Samsung Group Enterprise Labor Union’s Samsung Electronics Branch, known as the Enterprise Labor Union, recently notified members that "Information on the DS special performance bonus will be provided after Chuseok, during the last week of September." The DS special management performance bonus is a new program that Samsung Electronics and its labor union agreed to introduce separately from the existing OPI (Performance Incentive) when they reached a wage agreement in May.
After difficult negotiations that continued until just before a general strike, labor and management agreed to pay the special management performance bonus using 10.5% of the DS Division’s operating profit as the funding source.
The special management performance bonus will be paid entirely in company stock after taxes, with no separate cap. Forty percent of the pool will first be allocated across the entire DS Division, while the remaining 60% will be divided among its business units. One-third of the shares granted can be sold immediately, while sales of the remaining shares will be restricted for one year and two years, respectively.
Accordingly, assuming Samsung Electronics’ operating profit this year reaches KRW 300 trillion, an employee in the DS Division’s memory business is estimated to receive approximately KRW 550 million in the special management performance bonus paid in company stock. Including up to KRW 50 million in OPI, based on an annual salary of KRW 100 million before taxes, the employee could receive approximately KRW 600 million in total.
Some analysts have forecast that Samsung Electronics’ operating profit for the year could reach as much as KRW 370 trillion, meaning the bonus pool could grow further.

The company is also expected to announce plans to use part of the special management performance bonus for social contributions. Choi Seung-ho, chairman of the Enterprise Labor Union, previously told Yonhap News Agency, "What will be announced this year is not the size of the special management performance bonus, but guidance on the method for calculating company stock and the payment criteria." He added, "The social contribution plan will also be explained."
He further stated, "The company and the union are discussing a plan to pursue social contributions through a one-to-one matching arrangement." Under the proposal being discussed, employees would voluntarily donate 0.5–1% of their special management performance bonus, and the company would contribute the same amount. Participation would be left to each employee’s discretion.
Another point to watch is the ongoing effort to improve working conditions. The DS Division plans to introduce Herman Miller’s New Aeron Light Plus office chairs sequentially at all of its workplaces. Aeron-series products are high-end office chairs sold in South Korea in the KRW 2–3 million range.
The Giheung site is expected to receive the chairs from next month through the end of this year. The Onyang, Cheonan and Hwaseong sites are scheduled for replacement in the first half of next year, followed by the Samsung Pyeongtaek Campus in the second half. Samsung Electronics’ Mobile eXperience (MX) Division introduced Herman Miller chairs about three years ago, while SK hynix adopted chairs from the brand in 2022, drawing attention as one of the semiconductor industry’s leading examples of workplace improvements.
[email protected] Kim Hee-sun Reporter