Hyundai Motor Union Launches Strike in South Korea

According to foreign media reports, the labor union of Hyundai Motor in South Korea has launched a three-day partial strike. According to a notice issued by the union to its members, the strike is being carried out simultaneously at Hyundai Motor’s factories across South Korea, with the main demands being shorter working hours and higher wages.

The notice stated that the Hyundai Motor Korea labor union, which has about 40,000 members, launched partial strikes at factories in locations including Ulsan, Jeonju, and Asan. According to the notice, workers stopped work for two hours on September 3 and September 4, and for four hours on September 5.

Previously, on August 25th, Hyundai Motor's South Korean labor union voted in favor of a strike motion through a vote by all members, and subsequently decided to initiate strike action.

Image source: Hyundai Motor

The labor union demands that Hyundai Motor's management allocate 30% of the company's net profit for 2024 as employee bonuses. Thanks to the performance growth in the U.S. market, Hyundai Motor achieved record-breaking revenue last year.

A union spokesperson stated that the union also wishes to raise the retirement age from the statutory 60 to 64 years and change to a four-and-a-half-day workweek. In 2003, the Hyundai Motor Union was among the first groups in South Korea to reach an agreement with management on a five-day workweek, whereas previously most South Koreans had to work half a day on Saturdays.

The Hyundai Motor Union is one of the largest and most influential labor groups in South Korea. From 2019 to last year, labor and management at Hyundai Motor have completed collective bargaining for six consecutive years without a strike. However, this year, the two sides have held 20 rounds of negotiations since June, yet have not made any substantial progress.

During the negotiations on September 2nd, Hyundai Motor's management presented a second proposal, which included: an increase in employees' monthly basic salary by 95,000 won (approximately $68); a bonus of 400% of the basic salary plus 14 million won; issuance of traditional market gift certificates worth 200,000 won; granting of 30 shares of company stock; and inclusion of some allowances into the regular wage calculation. However, the proposal was rejected by the union.