Some employees at SK Hynix are moving forward with plans to establish a unified labor union that encompasses both production workers and technical and administrative staff. Amid discussions on reforming the performance bonus system and growing dissatisfaction among members toward existing unions, calls for forming a new union are gaining momentum.
According to industry sources on the 9th, some SK Hynix employees have formed a preparatory group to establish a unified union and recently submitted an application for union registration. The preparatory group reportedly includes around 3,500 participants, representing about 10% of the company's total workforce of approximately 35,000 employees. The unified union, Lim Si-wi (Director), announced via a notice the previous day that it expects to officially establish the union as early as next week.
Conflicts over performance bonuses lie at the heart of the push for a unified union. SK Hynix currently operates under a multiple-union system, with the technical and administrative union affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) and the full-time worker unions at the Icheon and Cheongju plants under the Korean Federation of Trade Unions (KFTU) conducting separate wage and collective bargaining negotiations. Key issues include the payment method for surplus profit sharing (PS) and measures to adjust wages in case of losses.
In last year's negotiations, SK Hynix agreed to use 10% of its operating profit as a source for performance bonuses and abolished the previous cap on performance bonuses, which had been set at 1,000% of base pay. Under this structure, 80% of PS is paid in cash within the same year, while the remaining 20% is distributed over two years.
For this year's negotiations, it is reported that management proposed paying a significant portion of PS in company stock with restrictions on selling for a certain period. The company also presented a plan to reform its wage system to allow temporary wage adjustments if losses occur.
Employees express concern that the company stock payment method could lead to varying actual compensation amounts depending on stock price fluctuations. There is also resistance to accepting measures that would adjust wages in case of losses. Additionally, there is backlash against bringing last year's agreed-upon performance bonus system back into negotiations just one year later. Lim Si-wi (Director) stated, "The primary purpose of establishing the unified union is the full implementation of last year's agreement on performance bonus payments," and reaffirmed its stance to withdraw management's proposed negotiation terms for performance bonuses.
Dissatisfaction with existing unions is also seen as a factor influencing the push for a unified union. With little progress made even after five rounds of main negotiations, criticisms have been raised that member opinions are not adequately reflected and that negotiation contents are not transparently shared. Some members are now expressing intentions to leave their current unions and join the unified union instead.
If the unified union is successfully established, securing its status as the sole representative bargaining union through processes such as consolidating negotiation channels will be crucial. Meanwhile, management maintains its position of proceeding with collective bargaining agreements with existing unions in accordance with legal procedures, independent of the establishment of the new union.
in INDUSTRY
