Samsung workers set to strike 'indefinitely'

National Samsung Electronics Union says company will not hold talks

A union representing Samsung Electronics workers in South Korea has called on its approximately 30,000 members to strike indefinitely.

The announcement came on the final day of a three-day strike which was called by the National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU). The decision was made in the face of intransigence by Samsung management, who according to the NSEU showed no indication that they were prepared to even hold talks.

About 20% of NSEU members went on strike on Monday, demanding better pay and holiday allowances. It was the latest in a recent line of stoppages. Unions rules and expectations in South Korea are different to those in the UK, and the strike wasn't mandatory. Nonetheless, the number of workers choosing to strike was higher than the union or Samsung expected.

"We are doing this out of desperation that it can't be done if not now," said NSEU leader Son Woo-mok at a rally outside Samsung's headquarters earlier this week. "We will continue to struggle until the company changes."

The NSEU represents around a quarter of Samsung workers overall and said that despite that fact that all of the, did not strike, it had disrupted production – a claim that Samsung disputed:

"Samsung Electronics will ensure no disruptions occur in the production lines. The company remains committed to engaging in good faith negotiations with the union," the firm told BBC News.

The standoff comes after Samsung reported some very strong second quarter financial results last week. The company posted a more than 15-fold increase to Won10.4tn ($7.5bn) in April to June operating profit, fuelled by strong demand for high-end D-RAM chips used in AI chipsets as well as storage chips.

Although Samsung shares received a boost on its Q2 results, investors remain uneasy about its position in comparison to other AI chip manufacturers such as SK Hynix and Nvidia.

Samsung doesn't have the best reputation for harmonious industrial relations. The company only agreed to recognise unions in 2020, and union membership has been ticking up ever since. The decision to recognise unions was made in the wake of the prosecution of the former chairman back in 2017 for bribery and corruption, in a scandal that also brought down the South Korean president and his government.