Hyundai Motor's labor union, unable to narrow differences with management over a wage agreement, has decided to escalate its campaign by staging eight-hour daily strikes.
According to industry sources on the 17th, the union of Hyundai Motor (005380.KS) plans to conduct partial strikes of eight hours each day for three days starting the 20th. The first shift will stop work from 10:50 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., while the second shift will halt from 7:30 p.m. until 12:10 a.m. the following day. The union had staged four-hour daily partial strikes from the 6th to the 8th, marking a further escalation.
Through central strike committee guidelines distributed to members that day, the union leadership said, "As there has been no forward-looking proposal or request to resume negotiations from management, we confirm a general strike schedule to raise the pressure on management and organize our fighting power through the total unity of our 40,000 members."
Hyundai Motor's labor and management had earlier held 15 rounds of wage negotiations but failed to close the gap. The union has presented management with demands centered on paying performance bonuses equal to 30 percent of last year's net profit and raising the monthly base wage by 149,600 won (excluding seniority-based increments). Hyundai Motor posted net profit of 10.3648 trillion won last year, and the company's position is that meeting the union's demands would require paying more than 3 trillion won in performance bonuses, which it finds difficult to accept.
Management has asked the union to compromise, saying its earnings outlook is not bright, with first-quarter operating profit this year plunging 30.8 percent from a year earlier. Management presented alternatives including a monthly base wage increase of 89,000 won, performance pay of 350 percent plus 10 million won, and the provision of 15 shares of stock, but the union rejected them.
Industry observers say that if labor and management fail to find common ground within next week, this year's wage and collective bargaining could be prolonged. Hyundai Motor's labor and management have typically aimed to settle negotiations before the summer holidays in early August. Considering essential steps such as a membership ratification vote, a tentative agreement must be reached by the 24th of this month at the latest to meet that target. An industry official expressed concern, saying, "If it goes past the summer holidays, there is no choice but to look toward a settlement before Chuseok, so negotiations will shift into a prolonged-battle mode," adding, "The intensity of the strikes will inevitably grow stronger as well."
Even as it decided to strike, the union left room for further negotiations with management. The union said, "When main negotiations (with management) are underway, the strike schedule for that day will be suspended." Hyundai Motor said, "The strike must be halted immediately because the damage is spreading to customers, suppliers, and the entire national economy," adding, "Now is the time for labor and management to join forces and contemplate survival against the massive wave of the transition to future mobility."
Starting with Hyundai Motor, unions at other automakers are also launching strikes one after another. GM Korea's union also carried out a strike stopping its plants for eight hours a day over two days starting the 15th, demanding higher performance bonuses. The unions of Kia (000270.KS) and Renault Korea plan to hold strike votes among their members during this month.
