Unions representing major automakers are set to resume strikes following their summer break. Hyundai Motor and Kia are among the companies where negotiations, which had paused during the summer vacation, will soon restart.
According to industry sources, the Hyundai union will hold a Central Negotiation Committee meeting on August 11 to discuss their future strategies. Key topics for discussion will include the possibility and intensity of additional strikes.
This year, the Hyundai union has already engaged in three partial strikes, escalating their actions. They conducted daily two-hour partial strikes from July 13 for three consecutive days, followed by four-hour partial strikes from July 20 to 22 and again from July 29 to 31.
The union argues that employee compensation is insufficient compared to the company's performance. They claim that while the company's operating profit has significantly increased, employee wages have not kept pace.
The union's demands include a basic wage increase of 149,600 won (excluding seniority increases), a performance bonus equivalent to 30% of last year's net profit, reinstatement of dismissed workers, and an extension of the retirement age to 65. The company has proposed an 89,000 won increase in monthly base salary, a performance bonus of 350% plus 10 million won, and 15 shares of company stock, but the union has rejected this offer.
Bridging the gap over the size of the performance bonus is proving challenging, especially given the difficult external environment for Hyundai. Last month, Hyundai's domestic sales fell to 48,113 units, a 14.4% decrease compared to the same period last year. Although the company's second-quarter revenue rose by 1.9% year-on-year to 49.2153 trillion won, operating profit dropped by 20.8% to 2.8509 trillion won, impacted by rising tariffs and raw material costs.
On July 27, the Central Labor Relations Commission decided to suspend mediation, allowing Kia to begin serious wage negotiations this month. The Kia union and management will hold their 10th working-level negotiations on August 11, followed by the 7th main negotiation at the Gwangju plant on August 12 and the 8th main negotiation at the Sohari plant on August 13.
The Kia union is also demanding a basic wage increase of 149,600 won, a performance bonus equivalent to 30% of last year's operating profit, the introduction of a 4.5-day workweek, and an extension of the retirement age to 65. However, given that Kia has concluded wage negotiations without disputes for five consecutive years from 2021 to last year, it remains to be seen whether this will lead to actual partial strikes.
Among mid-sized automakers, Renault Korea has begun preparations for a strike following the Central Labor Relations Commission's decision to suspend mediation last month. The Renault Korea union is demanding a basic wage increase of 284,595 won, the abolition of the wage peak system, and the reintroduction of a seniority-based pay system. Meanwhile, Korea GM and KG Mobility (KGM) completed their wage negotiations last month.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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