Samsung Electronics’ union members hold placards during a rally outside the company building in Seoul on June 7, 2024, as workers at the tech giant staged the first ever strike, the head of a major union representing tens of thousands of people told AFP.
“We have plans for follow-up strikes if the management is not willing to communicate with us openly,” Lee told AFP.Union head Son Woo-mok added that the “first strike at Samsung Electronics” was taking place through “the use of paid leave, and it is understood that many employees are participating”. Around 10 workers held a protest in front of Samsung’s major office in Seoul on Friday, chanting, “Respect labour!”Samsung Electronics’ union members shout slogans during a rally outside the company building in Seoul on June 7, 2024, as workers at the tech giant staged the first ever strike, the head of a major union representing tens of thousands of people told AFP.
“Finally, fabs rely heavily on automated production and require minimal human labor. Therefore, the strike will not have any substantial impact on the future memory supply,” the report said.The Samsung flag flutters in the wind outside the company building in Seoul on June 7, 2024. Even so, the strike carries historical importance, “since Samsung resisted unionisation and engaged in union-busting for so long”, Vladimir Tikhonov, professor of Korean Studies at the University of Oslo, told AFP.
Samsung founder Lee Byung-chul, who died in 1987, was adamantly opposed to unions, saying he would never allow them “until I have dirt over my eyes”.In 2020, Lee Jae-yong, the company’s then-vice-chairman and the founder’s grandson, apologised to “everyone who has been pained by labour issues at Samsung”, adding he would “make sure” the company “is not criticised for union-free management”.