The entrance to the Samsung Biologics facility in Songdo, Incheon, on May 4. [KIM KYOUNG-ROK]
Talks between Samsung Biologics and its union broke down on Monday despite government mediation, raising the risk of a prolonged strike that has already caused losses of 150 billion won ($101 million).
The negotiations, held at the company’s facility in Songdo, Incheon, under the auspices of the Ministry of Employment and Labor, lasted about five hours but ended without an agreement.
Management and union representatives are scheduled to hold another meeting on May 6, followed by a joint session with mediators from the ministry on May 8.
The strike, which officially began on May 1, has seen about 2,800 union members participate by taking annual leave or refusing to report to work. Of the company’s 5,455 employees, about 73 percent — or 3,998 workers — are unionized.
“Both labor and management participated in the talks in good faith, but we were unable to reach a concrete agreement,” the company said. “We will do our best in the two rounds of talks scheduled for this week.”
Samsung Biologics said negotiations have been hampered by what it described as excessive demands from the union, particularly on wages and bonuses.
The company also objected to proposals to include union representatives in decisions regarding hiring, personnel appointments and mergers and acquisitions, arguing that such measures could infringe on management authority.
The union is calling for an average wage increase of 14.3 percent, along with performance-based bonuses funded by 20 percent of the company’s annual operating profit and the removal of caps on incentive pay.
It has also reportedly demanded greater oversight of management decisions, including prior notice of executive appointments, joint labor-management approval on hiring and work force allocation, and union oversight of major transactions such as mergers and acquisitions.
Production disruptions due to the strike have affected 23 products, including cancer treatments, HIV-related drugs and therapies for atopic dermatitis.
If the strike continues through May 5, losses could soar to 640 billion won, exceeding the company’s first-quarter operating profit of 580.8 billion won.
Union leaders pushed back on the company’s characterization of their demands as excessive, saying they are aimed at establishing more transparent standards in personnel and management practices.
“Meaningful progress was impossible because decision makers from the company did not attend the talks,” said Park Jae-sung, head of the Samsung Biologics union. “While the company expresses concern about the damage caused by the strike, it is not actually engaging in negotiations.”
He added that the union is considering extending the strike beyond its originally planned end date of May 5.
“We had planned to carry out an indefinite but law-abiding pressure campaign by refusing overtime and holiday work after May 5, but we are now also reviewing the option of extending the strike itself,” Park said.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
댓글
0