Small and midsize businesses said of the tentative wage deal reached the previous day between labor and management at Samsung Electronics that "questions remain over whether fair compensation and rewards were provided to partner small and midsize companies."
KBIZ on the 21st issued "the position of the small and midsize business community on the settlement of negotiations between labor and management at Samsung Electronics," saying, "We are relieved that labor and management at Samsung Electronics reached a deal without allowing an extreme situation in which semiconductor lines would stop," and added, "This settlement is meaningful in that concerns over production disruptions at a corporations with a massive impact on the domestic economy have been dispelled at a time when global competition in semiconductors is intensifying."
However, it noted, "Workers and owners at small and midsize companies who watched the Samsung Electronics labor-management negotiations feel heavy-hearted," adding, "Amid the debate over performance bonuses worth hundreds of millions of won, questions remain over whether partner small and midsize companies received fair compensation and rewards."
It continued, "The deepening polarization between large corporations and small and midsize companies is the most serious problem in society," explaining, "The wages of small and midsize company workers are about half those at large corporations, and the gaps in various bonuses and benefits are even greater." It added, "The competitiveness of Korea's semiconductor industry, rated among the world's best, is the result achieved as one team by thousands of partner firms and small and midsize companies in materials and parts," and "The contributions and roles of partner small and midsize companies must also be fairly evaluated."
KBIZ said, "The small and midsize business community hopes that the co-prosperity measures promised by Samsung Electronics will become effective measures that lead to a virtuous cycle of research and development, facility investment, and wage increases at partner firms."
Earlier, labor and management at Samsung Electronics reached a tentative agreement a day before a strike, including creating a special performance bonus for the semiconductor (DS) institutional sector and paying 10.5% of business results entirely in treasury stock. Under the agreement, this year's performance bonuses for employees in the DS institutional sector are expected to reach up to about 600 million won before tax.