A union representing thousands of workers at Samsung Electronics has announced the first strike in the South Korean technology giant’s 55-year history.
The National Samsung Electronics Union plans a one-day protest on June 7, urging all its members to use their paid leave, and has not ruled out a future full-scale strike.
The union, with approximately 28,000 members, represents over a fifth of Samsung’s total workforce.
Samsung Electronics has stated it will continue negotiations with the union.
“We can’t stand persecution against labour unions anymore. We are declaring a strike in the face of the company’s neglect of labourers,” a union representative said during a live-streamed news conference.
Samsung Electronics’ management has been in talks with the union since the start of this year over wages, but the two sides have so far failed to strike a deal.
The union has demanded a 6.5% pay rise and a bonus pegged to the company’s earnings.
Samsung Electronics is the world’s largest maker of memory chips, smartphones and televisions.
Analysts have warned that a full-scale strike could affect the firm’s computer chip manufacturing and impact the global supply chains of electronics.
Samsung Electronics is the flagship unit of South Korean conglomerate Samsung Group. It is the biggest of the country’s family-controlled businesses that dominate Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
Samsung Group was known for not allowing unions to represent its workers until 2020 when the company came under intense public scrutiny after its chairman was prosecuted for market manipulation and bribery.
Samsung Electronics’ shares were trading about 2% lower in Seoul after the announcement.