The Samsung SDS labor union secured majority support among employees just one day after its formation, effectively establishing its status as the representative bargaining union. The union has initiated negotiations with the company, demanding collective bargaining.
According to Yonhap News on July 7, the Samsung SDS branch of the Samsung Group's super corporate labor union reported that its membership exceeded 5,650 by 6:50 PM that day. The union considers 5,644 members, which is half of the total 11,287 employees, as the threshold for majority status.
On the same day, the union submitted a request for collective bargaining to Lee Jun-hee, President and CEO of Samsung SDS, and the company announced the commencement of the bargaining process. Under current labor union laws, a majority union gains the status of a representative bargaining union.
As a representative bargaining union, it will negotiate collective agreements regarding wages, performance bonuses, benefits, and working conditions. Consequently, the union is expected to have increased influence in future discussions surrounding major personnel and compensation systems, including the reform of the performance bonus system.
The formation of this union is seen as a response to conflicts surrounding the reform of the performance bonus system. Samsung SDS is pushing to replace the existing cash-based Performance Incentive (PI) with a system that allocates a portion of salaries in company stock.
Initially scheduled to conclude on June 29, the employee vote on the union's formation was extended and will now close at midnight on July 7. Some employees have raised concerns about the performance bonus criteria being linked to external indicators such as stock prices and the potential reduction in compensation due to the elimination of the existing PI.
The union stated, "The abolition of the PI system and the stock price-linked performance bonus criteria have not gained employee support," and called for a halt to the reform efforts, an expression of regret from management, and joint discussions with the union.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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