Samsung workers protest over huge pay gap with SK Hynix, threaten long strike

Other Samsung workers, who gathered in black vests for the mass sit-in at the Pyeongtaek campus, also said that many of their colleagues had left for SK Hynix.

The Samsung Electronics Labour Union argues that a chip division employee with a base pay of 76 million won would receive 38 million won in bonus pay for 2025, or less than a third of the figure a similarly paid SK Hynix employee would qualify for.

Samsung said it would continue to make efforts to reach a swift agreement in wage negotiations.

A Samsung official speaking on condition of anonymity has said that production halts caused by “even a single strike” could damage trust with customers and take years to recover from.

WORKERS WANT CAP ON BONUS PAY SCRAPPED

SK Hynix in September accepted its union’s demand for compensation reform and hefty bonuses, fueling Samsung employees’ frustration over the pay gap and sparking a surge in union membership.

Union members now number more than 90,000, representing over 70 per cent of Samsung’s South Korean workforce.

One of the most contentious issues is a union demand to scrap a cap on bonus pay, currently set at 50 per cent of annual base salary, which management has rejected. SK Hynix agreed to eliminate the cap on bonus pay, Samsung union officials said.

Samsung’s union is also demanding that 15 per cent of annual operating profit be allocated as bonus pay and a 7 per cent hike in basic salaries.

Management has, however, offered 10 per cent of operating profit for performance pay and additional funding to ensure memory division employees receive higher payouts than competitors this year.