(Newsis)
Tensions are widening within Samsung Electronics Co.’s labor union as the performance-based bonus system – shaped by the semiconductor boom – deepens internal divisions.
According to industry sources on Sunday, the union’s communications and activities are heavily centered on the Device Solutions (DS) division, which handles semiconductors. This has led employees in the Device eXperience (DX) division, which covers home appliances and mobile devices, to complain that it is a “union only for semiconductors.
Members in non-semiconductor divisions, as a result, are increasingly leaving the union, escalating intra-labor conflict.
The root of the dispute lies in the widening gap in business performance between divisions.
Of Samsung Electronics’ 57 trillion won ($38.8 billion) in operating profit in the first quarter, 53 trillion won was generated by the DS division.
While the DS division is posting record profits driven by rising memory prices and strong AI-related demand, the DX division is struggling with weakening profitability due to cost pressures and slowing demand with potential annual losses being discussed.
Analysts say tensions are rising as union demands are tied to semiconductor-driven results. The union’s demand for 15 percent of operating profit as bonuses and removal of caps has further exposed the conflict.
If accepted, the DS division would receive a large share of excess profits, while the DX division could face reduced bonuses and restructuring pressures. This has fueled concerns that compensation is becoming overly concentrated in one division, weakening organizational cohesion.
On the ground, complaints are surfacing that union activities are overly concentrated on the semiconductor division.
According to Samsung Electronics’ internal anonymous community and industry sources, union announcements and communications are centered on the DS division, with relatively limited guidance for the DX division.
Within internal communication channels, dissatisfaction is growing over inadequate responses to issues raised by the finished goods division.
Criticism has also emerged that “the underperforming finished goods business is being sidelined and even mocked,” with the conflict increasingly taking on an emotional dimension.
This sentiment is translating into union membership withdrawals.
According to industry sources, daily withdrawal applications on the website of the Samsung Electronics branch of Samsung Group’s umbrella labor union have recently surged, at times exceeding 1,100 in a single day.
Verified withdrawal posts are spreading across internal boards and employee communities, accelerating the outflow.
In particular, backlash is rapidly growing within the finished goods division, with claims that the union is “only for the semiconductor sector.”
The way the union is operated has also been cited as a factor fueling the conflict.
Following an increase in union dues during the labor dispute, the union decided to pay staff who participated in the strike an allowance of up to 3 million won.
This has drawn criticism among members that while the cost burden is shared by all, the benefits are concentrated among a few, undermining trust in union leadership.
External factors are also adding pressure.
The government and President Lee Jae-myung have expressed concerns over excessive labor demands, increasing public scrutiny, while controversies surrounding remarks by union leaders are affecting its external image.
Park Yong-jin, vice chairman of the Presidential Committee on Regulatory Rationalization, criticized both the union, which has threatened a general strike demanding the abolition of performance-based pay caps, and management.
“It is frankly uncomfortable to watch them lock the gates and focus on feasting among themselves and internal squabbles over their astronomical profits, instead of sharing with the broader community,” he wrote on Facebook.
A full-scale strike by the union at Samsung Biologics Co., a biotech affiliate, in the meantime, has entered its third day.
About 2,800 out of roughly 4,000 union members are reportedly participating—more than half of the company’s total workforce of 5,455 employees.
Labor and management are set to return to negotiations on Monday under mediation by the regional labor office, but a resolution remains uncertain due to wide differences.
In particular, negotiations show signs of prolonging as the union demands prior consent for major management decisions, including new hiring, personnel evaluations, and mergers and acquisitions (M&A).
The company maintains that such demands are difficult to accept, as they pertain to managerial and personnel authority, although noting that it will “continue negotiations in an effort to resolve the issue through dialogue.”
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