Samsung Biologics, union to resume talks next week

By Kim Dong-young Posted : June 12, 2026, 15:36 Updated : June 12, 2026, 15:36
Samsung Biologics' Bio Campus One/ Yonhap
 
SEOUL, June 12 (AJP) - Samsung Biologics and its labor union will resume negotiations next week in a bid to narrow differences over wage increases and personnel system reforms that have strained relations at the South Korean contract drugmaker for months.

The two sides agreed to meet on June 16, industry sources said Friday, after the union pressed management to return to the bargaining table and the company responded earlier in the day.

Management has proposed first holding working-level discussions on the collective agreement to close gaps on contentious issues, before chief negotiators take up wages and benefits in separate talks.

The company also suggested the two sides jointly devise measures to restore customer trust and repair its external image.

Tensions escalated after talks collapsed, prompting about 60 workers to stage a partial walkout in late April.

A full strike followed from May 1 to 5, drawing about 2,800 participants, and workers have since waged a work-to-rule campaign by refusing overtime and holiday shifts since May 6.

The union also plans to hold a vote among members late this month on whether to withdraw from Samsung Group's supra-enterprise union and revise its bylaws.

A proposed amendment that would place decisions on the scope and disbursement of "living cost support" under the executive committee has stirred internal criticism that leaders are seeking to manage finances arbitrarily without a full membership vote.

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