Samsung Unions Ratify Profit-Sharing Deal That Averts 48,000-Worker Strike

Overview

• Unionized Samsung workers approved the government-mediated agreement with about 73–74% support, ratified on Wednesday and ending a planned strike that could have involved roughly 48,000 employees.
• The deal gives qualifying chip-division staff large one-off payments this year and sets a 10-year structure that directs 10.5% of the chips division’s operating profit into share-based bonuses plus 1.5% in cash each year.
• Some chip workers could receive up to about US$338,000 this year under the pact while workers in other units will get smaller payouts, a split that has deepened divisions among Samsung’s unions.
• The Samsung Electronics Co Union (SECU) that was excluded from the vote has filed for court intervention and a small group of individual shareholders has threatened litigation alleging parts of the arrangement may require formal shareholder approval.
• The agreement follows a surge in chip profits and a market value above US$1 trillion for Samsung, and it may set a precedent for how AI-driven gains are shared, taxed, and regulated in South Korea.